Which statement best distinguishes relative dating from absolute dating?

• A. Relative dating provides numerical ages for rocks.
• B. Absolute dating only uses fossil correlations.
• C. Relative dating places events in sequence without numerical ages.
• D. Absolute dating uses radiometric methods to determine numerical ages, while relative dating orders events.

Answer: (D)

Think about what each dating method actually gives you. Relative dating orders events in time—which event came before or after—without providing exact ages. Absolute dating, on the other hand, uses methods like radiometric dating to determine numerical ages in years. That combination is what clearly distinguishes the two: absolute dating yields actual ages, while relative dating only gives sequence.

Radiometric dating relies on known decay rates of isotopes (for example, Uranium-Lead or Carbon-14) to calculate how long rocks or fossils have existed. Fossils themselves can help place rocks in a general time frame through fossil succession in relative dating, but they don’t provide precise numerical ages. This makes the statement that absolute dating uses radiometric methods to determine numerical ages, while relative dating orders events, the most accurate and complete description.