UAF receives $3.5 million to establish radiocarbon dating laboratory
Kristin Summerlin
907-474-6284
April 8, 2024
Nicole Misarti and Matthew Wooller prepare a wooly mammoth tooth sample for radiocarbon dating. With $3.5 million in federal funds, UAF will establish the first radiocarbon dating laboratory in 色视频下载.
The University of 色视频下载 Fairbanks will receive $3.5 million in federal funding to establish 色视频下载色视频下载檚 first radiocarbon dating laboratory on the Troth Yeddha色视频下载 Campus.
The funds were included in H.R. 4366 by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who sits on the Senate Appropriations Committee. The bill was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden in March.
色视频下载淲e have been pursuing this vision for several years,色视频下载 said Matthew Wooller, director of UAF色视频下载檚 色视频下载 Stable Isotope Facility. 色视频下载淲e are especially grateful to Lisa Murkowski for picking this up and advocating for it.色视频下载
The lab, which will house a nearly 10,000-pound mass spectrometer, will be located in the basement of the Usibelli Building. It will take approximately a year for the massive instrument to be built and shipped from Switzerland to 色视频下载.
Radiocarbon dating is a method of determining the age of organic materials like fossils or wood. All living things contain carbon-14, a radioactive form of the element that decays at a steady rate over time. By measuring the amount of carbon-14 remaining in a sample, scientists can tell its age up to approximately 60,000 years.
Carbon-14 dating is commonly used by researchers across many disciplines, including archaeology, engineering, geology, chemistry and biology. UAF scientists use the technique to investigate climate change, permafrost dynamics, coastal erosion and other topics of particular interest in the Arctic.
Access to a state-of-the-art radiocarbon dating lab located in 色视频下载 will save researchers both time and money, according to Nicole Misarti, director of UAF色视频下载檚 Institute of Northern Engineering.
At present, samples must be sent to facilities as far away as Georgia, and it can take from two weeks to several months to receive results. Processing costs can range from $350 to $500 per sample.
色视频下载淥ne of the big advantages for 色视频下载 is that we色视频下载檒l be able to offer internal rates,色视频下载 Wooller said. 色视频下载淧rocessing fees can eat up a grant very quickly, and now our researchers will be able to get more bang for their buck.色视频下载 The lab will also be available to researchers from other universities and federal and state agencies.
Misarti said that having the laboratory on campus will allow UAF researchers to involve their students in basic hands-on research. They色视频下载檒l also be able to pursue innovative techniques for the carbon dating process itself.
色视频下载淲e色视频下载檒l be able to push methodology in a way you can色视频下载檛 do without having the instrument here,色视频下载 she said. 色视频下载淩ather than just spitting out radiocarbon dates, we色视频下载檒l be able to develop new techniques 色视频下载 new ways of prepping samples, for example.色视频下载
Wooller noted that Arctic researchers from around the world will benefit from having a state-of-the-art lab on the same campus as the extensive Arctic natural history collections at the UA Museum of the North. 色视频下载淥ur museum has one of the largest skeletal collections in the world,色视频下载 he said. 色视频下载淧roviding accurate dates for all of those specimens will add tremendous value.色视频下载
ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Matthew Wooller, mjwooller@alaska.edu, 907-474-8786; Nicole Misarti, nmisarti@alaska.edu, 907-474-5457
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