Question

Describe how tree rings form and how they can be used to address scientific questions. In your answer, be sure to address both parts of this question (how they form, how we use them) with specific supporting details.

Answer 1

Trees create a new ring in each growth cycle. They can tell us the age of the tree. Light coloured rings represent the growth in the spring and early summer while the dark ones are that grew in the late summer and fall. So one light plus one dark ring corresponds to one whole year of a tree’s lifecycle. When we put together the data from many of these tree-rings together, we can extrapolate a variety of data in the fields of archeology, environment studies etc. Study of data from tree rings is known as dendrochronology.

We can count the rings by collecting a sample with an increment borer which extracts a thin strip of wood going all the way to the center of the tree. Horizontal cross sections cut through the trunk of a tree can reveal growth rings, also referred to as tree rings or annual rings.

Dates from dendrochronology can be used as a calibration and check of radiocarbon dating. It has become important to art historians in estimating the dates of panel paintings. We can learn about the past climate which is called dendroclimatology.

References:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dendrochronology

2. https://www.environmentalscience.org/dendrochronology-tree-rings-tell-us

3. https://go.nasa.gov/2zAJzWm