DendrochronologyFrom greek: δένδρον (dendros, tree), χρόνος (chronos, time) y λόγος (logos, study)Th

DendrochronologyFrom greek: δένδρον (dendros, tree), χρόνος (chronos, time) y λόγος (logos, study)This chronometric technique is the most precise dating tool available to archaeologists who work in areas where trees are particularly responsive to annual variations in precipitation, such as the American Southwest.Developed by astronomer A. E. Douglass in the 1920s, dendrochronology—or tree-ring dating—involves matching the pattern of tree rings in archaeological wood samples to the pattern of tree rings in a sequence of overlapping samples extending back thousands of years. These cross-dated sequences, called chronologies, vary from one part of the world to the next. In the American Southwest, the unbroken sequence extends back to 322 B.C.So, when an archaeologist finds a well-preserved piece of wood—say, a roof beam from an ancient pithouse—dendrochronologists prepare a cross section and then match the annual growth rings of the specimen to those in the already-established chronology to determine the year the tree was cut down.One limitation of this technique is to find species that form rings with annual resolution, where it is possible to distinguish the annual rings so you can properly date the samples and build timelines. Although there are trees in temperate regions that do not form rings, this is especially difficult in humid tropical areas because the annual climate uniformity. However there is scientific evidence of many species of tropical trees that form rings of annual growth, moreover, have been studied to study the climate and the dynamics of tropical forestsPicture source -- source link

More pics about