The story of Noah's ark is one of the most beloved Old Testament tales. Noah built that ark for a long time, then there was the great flood, and all the animals boarded two by two and so on. But what's the real story of the ark? Here's the untold truth of Noah's ark.
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00:00The tale of Noah's Ark is one of the most cherished stories in the Old Testament.
00:05Noah spent years building the ark before the Great Flood arrived, bringing pairs of animals
00:09aboard.
00:10But beyond the familiar details lies a deeper narrative.
00:13Here's a look at the untold story behind Noah's Ark.
00:17One of the most famous alleged sites of Noah's Ark is the Durupanar site in Turkey, which
00:22certainly resembles a boat.
00:24According to Atlas Obscura, this formation was revealed after earthquakes and storms
00:28in the late 1940s.
00:30Despite its striking appearance, no credible evidence has ever confirmed it as the ark's
00:35final resting place.
00:36In fact, during the first investigation in 1960, it was ruled out as a candidate.
00:41The formation, made of rock and hardened mud, lacks any timbers or iron fastenings one would
00:46expect in a large vessel.
00:48Even the fragments of supposed petrified wood found are likely from a mudslide.
00:52As for the claims of petrified animal droppings, they don't hold much weight either, considering
00:57animals have roamed the Earth for millions of years.
01:00In 2010, a group of evangelical Christian explorers claimed they had discovered Noah's
01:05Ark near Mount Ararat's summit in Turkey.
01:08National Geographic reported that the team found seven large wooden compartments and
01:12carbon dated the wood to around 4,800 years old, aligning with the biblical Noah story.
01:18Despite this, many remain unconvinced.
01:21NBC News suggests the structure is more likely an ancient shelter than a massive ark.
01:26Critics argue that such expeditions often lack proper skepticism, which hinders objective
01:31analysis.
01:32Stony Brook University archaeologist Paul Zemanski noted that approaching these searches
01:36with more critical thinking is essential, as definitive proof of the ark's existence
01:41remains elusive despite such findings.
01:43I don't know of any expedition that ever went looking for the ark and didn't find it.
01:48Flood stories aren't unique to the Old Testament.
01:51Many ancient cultures have their own tales of devastating deluges.
01:55Some scientists believe these myths may be rooted in actual events, even if they've been
01:59exaggerated over time.
02:00According to ABC, two Columbia University scientists proposed that the Black Sea was
02:06once a freshwater lake before being overwhelmed by seawater from the Mediterranean.
02:11This theory caught the attention of famed underwater explorer Robert Ballard, known
02:15for discovering the Titanic.
02:17In 1999, Ballard's team discovered an ancient shoreline 400 feet below the surface and radiocarbon
02:24dating suggested the area was flooded around the time of the biblical Noah.
02:28Ballard also claimed to have found man-made structures, but details about the expedition
02:33have since faded.
02:34Today, Ballard's focus has shifted to other projects, including mapping the seafloor on
02:39the other side of the globe.
02:40While intriguing, the theory remains speculative, with no definitive link between the Black
02:45Sea flood and Noah's Ark.
02:47In 1872, Englishman George Smith uncovered a cuneiform tablet detailing a flood story
02:54strikingly similar to the biblical tale.
02:56According to the New Yorker, it described a man, a boat, and a catastrophic flood, complete
03:01with the mountaintop landing and the release of a dove.
03:04However, this Mesopotamian version differs in key ways.
03:08Instead of one god, a group of ancient deities decided to flood the world.
03:12Their reasoning wasn't humanity's corruption, but rather the annoyance humans caused them.
03:16Unlike the biblical account of divine judgment, this story suggests that God's decision was
03:21more out of frustration.
03:23It's a reminder that, in mythology, even the gods can be capricious when bothered.
03:30The cuneiform tablets also share the Noah story's detailed building instructions.
03:35While the Ark differs in design between the two accounts, both provide enough specifics
03:39that someone could theoretically build a similar vessel.
03:42The measurements and guidelines are there, ready for use should anyone ever need to construct
03:47their own flood-proof boat.
03:49One of the key debates around Noah's Ark revolves around whether a vessel of that size
03:53could actually support the weight of so many animals.
03:56In 2014, a group of master's students from Leicester University aimed to answer this.
04:02Using the Bible's dimensions for the Ark, they calculated its buoyancy based on water
04:06density.
04:07According to their findings, the Ark could have carried up to 70,000 animals without
04:12sinking.
04:13Their study, as reported by The Telegraph, showed that despite the enormous task of loading
04:17so many creatures, the Ark would have stayed afloat, suggesting that, at least mathematically,
04:22the story holds up in terms of ship capacity.
04:29Their conclusion, however, has some flaws.
04:31For instance, the calculations assumed the Ark would sit so low in the water that even
04:36small waves could have easily swamped it, especially during a 40-day storm.
04:40Additionally, the study only considered the animals' weight, not their size or the space
04:44needed to house them.
04:46Despite these limitations, the research still addressed a major question about the Ark's
04:51ability to carry such a large number of creatures, offering some insight into the feasibility
04:56of Noah's journey.
04:57So, that's a small victory.
04:59The Noah's Ark story sidesteps a major issue, genetics.
05:03After the Flood, Noah's family would have been the only humans left, meaning their only
05:08options for repopulating the world were within their own family.
05:12Inbreeding, aside from being socially taboo, is scientifically proven to cause genetic
05:17problems.
05:18With just eight people, the gene pool would be far too limited to sustain long-term population
05:23growth, making the idea of repopulating the world highly improbable from a genetic standpoint.
05:37History provides a clear example of why inbreeding is problematic.
05:41Take Charles II of Spain, who suffered severe disabilities, not learning to walk until age
05:468, largely due to the extensive inbreeding in his family.
05:49According to the BBC, his genetic makeup was more compromised than if his parents had been
05:54siblings.
05:55This is a stark reminder of the dangers of a limited gene pool, a concept that might
05:59also explain the infamous personality of Joffrey Baratheon.
06:05This raises questions about how today's human population emerged from such a precariously
06:10small gene pool.
06:11The Bible provides precise dimensions for Noah's Ark, offering early readers tangible
06:16details in an otherwise unbelievable narrative.
06:20This specificity has inspired massive replicas at various attractions.
06:24A life-sized version opened in the Netherlands in 2012, attracting around 3,000 visitors
06:29daily and costing over a million dollars to construct in just three years.
06:34Kentucky joined the trend in 2016 with its own life-sized replica, dubbed Ark Encounter,
06:39located in Williamstown.
06:41This attraction features a variety of exhibits, including cages filled with dinosaurs, which
06:45might not appeal to those with a scientific mindset.
06:48These replicas highlight the enduring fascination with the Ark story, while also sparking discussions
06:54about its historical and scientific validity.
06:57Science poses significant challenges to the Noah's Ark narrative, with experts indicating
07:02a lack of evidence for a global catastrophic flood in the geological record.
07:06As highlighted by the Skeptical Inquirer, certain regions exhibit signs of aridity that
07:11align precisely with the time when Earth was thought to be submerged.
07:15Additionally, the presence of dunes and desert deposits across various locations suggests
07:20that if the world had indeed been flooded, these features would not exist.
07:24If a flood had engulfed the entire planet, we would expect most sedimentary rocks to
07:29be found on the ocean floor.
07:31However, the reality is that sedimentary rock is predominantly located on continents,
07:36contradicting expectations of a 5,000-year-old flood.
07:39The implications extend into archaeology as well, particularly in Turkey, where the Ark
07:44is said to have landed as the waters receded.
07:47Stony Brook University archaeologist Paul Zemanski has provided insights that further
07:51complicate the story, suggesting that the historical and geological evidence does not
07:56support the flood narrative as presented in religious texts.
08:00We know what's going on with Turkey archaeologically at that time, and there's no major interruption
08:04in the culture.
08:06Dangerous hobbies are nothing new.
08:07Many enthusiasts climb mountains without safety gear, leap off cliffs in wingsuits, or even
08:12engage in the quirky sport of extreme ironing.
08:15However, when these dangerous pastimes merge with an obsession and the quest for fame through
08:19discovery, the consequences can be dire.
08:22Over the years, numerous adventurers have become fixated on locating Noah's Ark.
08:26While many have joined organized expeditions that offer some safety, others, like Donald
08:30McKenzie, have ventured out alone in pursuit of the legendary vessel.
08:34Tragically, McKenzie's obsession led to his disappearance and presumed death.
08:39While attempting to reach a site identified in 2010, he was caught in an unexpected blizzard
08:45and vanished without a trace, highlighting the perilous nature of such quests.
08:50While it's possible the Ark had enough space for all the animals and could handle the weight
08:54without sinking, one pressing question remains.
08:56If it truly floated for seven months, how was there sufficient storage for the vast
09:00amounts of food required to sustain such a large number of animals?
09:04Furthermore, how did just eight individuals manage to care for them all during that extended
09:08period?
09:19Those with zoo experience know that accommodating animals in confined spaces involves much more
09:24than merely feeding them and cleaning up waste.
09:26As noted by the National Center for Science Education, each enclosure must be meticulously
09:31crafted to cater to the specific requirements of various species, including the height of
09:36food and water containers, and the size of perches for birds.
09:40According to the tale, a dove helped Noah locate land by returning with an olive branch,
09:45signaling the flood's end.
09:47However, the skeptical inquirer notes that water and trees typically do not coexist well,
09:52raising questions about this detail.
10:00The Bible states that Noah's Ark remained afloat for five months before landing atop
10:04Mount Ararat.
10:05However, a 2016 study revealed that an olive tree submerged for only three months perished,
10:11while grass died within a month underwater.
10:13This would leave herbivorous animals with no food upon exiting the Ark.
10:17Additionally, Noah's vineyard, planted shortly after the flood, would likely have failed
10:22due to excessive salinity from the seawater, rendering the soil too salty to support plant
10:27life.
10:28Thus, everything would have been adversely affected by the salt.
10:37That's only considering plant life.
10:39Reintroducing thousands of herbivores alongside their predators into the same ecosystem would
10:44drastically reduce their numbers.
10:46Without a significant time buffer, perhaps a decade or two, it's unlikely that both
10:51groups could coexist in sustainable numbers.
10:54For those familiar with Waterworld, the melting polar ice caps lead to a waterlogged world
10:59where humanity survives on makeshift vessels endlessly hunting for the elusive dry land
11:04while resorting to drinking their own urine.
11:07Quite the imaginative scenario.
11:17A Waterworld-style scenario is highly implausible, as there simply isn't enough water on Earth
11:22to submerge the entire planet.
11:24The American Museum of Natural History estimates that if all ice melted, sea levels would only
11:29rise about 230 feet.
11:31While this would devastate coastal cities, it wouldn't come close to engulfing the entire
11:35globe.
11:36If a global flood did occur, it would have to recede and somehow disappear from the planet
11:40entirely.
11:41This issue is likely the least of the challenges facing the story.