CARBON 14

 Dictionary entry overview: What does carbon 14 mean? 

• CARBON 14 (noun)
  The noun CARBON 14 has 1 sense:

1. a radioactive isotope of carbon

  Familiarity information: CARBON 14 used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• CARBON 14 (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A radioactive isotope of carbon

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Synonyms:

carbon 14; radiocarbon

Hypernyms ("carbon 14" is a kind of...):

atomic number 6; C; carbon (an abundant nonmetallic tetravalent element occurring in three allotropic forms: amorphous carbon and graphite and diamond; occurs in all organic compounds)

 Context examples 

Next, they compared the real age of the marine sediments to the deep ocean carbon 14 measurement, giving them a record of ocean circulation patterns in this region over time.

(A new study is the first to measure the time lags between changing ocean currents and major climate shifts., University of Cambridge)

For example, carbon 12, carbon 13, and carbon 14 are isotopes of carbon.

(Isotope, NCI Dictionary)

The researchers solved this puzzle by measuring carbon 14 levels from a nearby lake sediment core and matching it to the marine core layers.

(A new study is the first to measure the time lags between changing ocean currents and major climate shifts., University of Cambridge)

By the time it reaches the organisms at the bottom of the water column, the carbon 14 could already be hundreds or thousands of years old.

(A new study is the first to measure the time lags between changing ocean currents and major climate shifts., University of Cambridge)

This relationship is tricky in ocean sediments, though, because carbon 14 is created in the atmosphere, and it takes time for the carbon to make its way through the ocean.

(A new study is the first to measure the time lags between changing ocean currents and major climate shifts., University of Cambridge)

Scientists typically rely on radioactive carbon (carbon 14) dating to determine the ages of sediments.

(A new study is the first to measure the time lags between changing ocean currents and major climate shifts., University of Cambridge)