geochronology

American  

[jee-oh-kruh-nol-uh-jee] / ˌdʒi oʊ krəˈnɒl ə dʒi /

noun

1. the chronology of the earth, as based on both absolute and relative methods of age determination.

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geochronology British  

/ ˌdʒiːəʊkrəˈnɒlədʒɪ, ˌdʒiːəʊˌkrɒnəˈlɒdʒɪkəl /

noun

1. the branch of geology concerned with ordering and dating of events in the earth's history, including the origin of the earth itself

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Other Word Forms

• geochronologic adjective
• geochronological adjective
• geochronologist noun

Etymology

Origin of geochronology

First recorded in 1890–95; geo- + chronology

Explanation

A lot has happened to make Earth what it is today, and geochronology is the science that studies this. Starting from the first moments of the planet’s existence, geochronology traces all major Earth-forming events from the beginning to the present day. The word geochronology also refers to the results of this study. Scientists in this field develop a proposed "story" of Earth's history, mapping out major events alongside their probable dates. Geologists, geophysicists, and paleontologists are among the many specialists involved in this work. The word geochronology combines the prefix geo-, meaning "Earth," with chronology, "an ordered account of events," which stems from the Greek root chronos, meaning "time."

Example Sentences

The findings were published in Geological Magazine under the title 'Multi-method geochronology and isotope geochemistry of carbonatites in the Aileron Province, central Australia'.

From Science Daily • Jan. 23, 2026

"It is the first geochronology study to come from the Chang’e-6 samples, and will be of immense importance to the lunar and planetary science community."

From BBC • Nov. 16, 2024

“There will be a really interesting geochronology story,” Horgan said.

From Science Magazine • Mar. 9, 2022

Renne, P. R., Mundil, R., Balco, G., Min, K. & Ludwig, K. R. Joint determination of 40K decay constants and 40Ar*/40K for the Fish Canyon sanidine standard, and improved accuracy for 40Ar/39Ar geochronology.

From Nature • Nov. 28, 2017

“These results look about as good as it can get,” said Alistair W. Pike, a geochronology expert at the University of Southampton who was not involved in the new study.

From New York Times • Apr. 26, 2017