Radiogenic isotopes and the Eastern Mineral Resources Program of the U.S. Geological Survey

Radiogenic isotope geology relies on a small group of naturally occurring but unstable elements that naturally produce energy and disintegrate or decay to more stable atoms of different elements. Because this phenomenon occurs at a known rate, is unaffected by most physical and chemical processes, and takes place over periods of time comparable to the age of the Earth, these elements can be used in radiometric dating or geochronology.