Search for Noah's ark near Ararat: what new boreholes found

The international research initiative Noah's Ark Scans has reported the results of new drilling work at the Durupınar formation near Mount Ararat in eastern Turkey: boreholes drilled this year found no continuous layer of solid rock inside the structure, but instead revealed extensive layers of dark soil that the scientists link to possible traces of decomposed wood.

The ark hypothesis at Ararat

The unusual shape of the Durupınar formation has drawn the attention of scientists and biblical-history enthusiasts for decades. Most geologists consider it the result of natural processes, but some researchers suggest it may conceal the remains of Noah's ark. That hypothesis is championed by Noah's Ark Scans, an international project that uses ground-penetrating radar, electrical resistivity tomography, LiDAR, 3D mapping, soil analysis and deep drilling to study the formation in eastern Turkey, not far from the border with Iran. The initiative was founded by American researcher Andrew Jones.

Back in May of last year, Noah's Ark Scans published the results of its radar survey and soil analysis: the ground-penetrating radar, according to the team's interpretation, indicated the likely presence of rectangular cavities and possible corridors, while soil samples taken inside the formation differed chemically from samples from the surrounding area. At the time, the researchers announced they would test the findings with deep boreholes.

What the Bible says about the ark

According to the Book of Genesis, Noah's ark was a massive wooden vessel built to save people and animals from a catastrophic worldwide flood. Its dimensions were 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high — roughly 135–156 meters long, 22.5–26 meters wide and 13.5–15.6 meters high. The ark had three decks, a side entrance and a skylight, and was coated inside and out with pitch for waterproofing. According to tradition, after 150 days the vessel came to rest “on the mountains of Ararat.”

Results of the new boreholes

This year the team drilled the planned boreholes and took more than 300 soil samples at various depths inside and outside the roughly 160-meter-long formation. At some points the drilling reached nearly 20 meters below the surface.

According to Jones, the boreholes inside the formation found no continuous layer of solid bedrock — instead, they revealed extensive layers of dark soil. Laboratory analysis should show whether the samples contain traces of decomposed wood or other signs of possible human activity. “Decomposing wood increases the organic content of soil. This year, when drilling inside the formation, we did not encounter a continuous layer of solid rock, as some critics have claimed. But we found extensive layers of very fertile black soil, in which we expect a high organic content,” Jones said.

Radar detects possible cavities

Additional data came from a survey using the BakhtarRadar system, developed by engineer and rock-mechanics specialist Khosrow Bakhtar. According to the team, in some areas the device was able to collect data from depths of up to 95 meters.

The processed data show linear features, regular structures and voids that Noah's Ark Scans interprets as possible corridors, individual chambers or several internal levels. “In forty years of work, I've never seen anomalies like these. Their pronounced character, in my view, suggests this isn't a random phenomenon and that they share a common origin. I'm convinced they're connected to the same object. What it was — a ship, a spacecraft or something else — I don't know yet,” Bakhtar said.

Although the Noah's Ark Scans team describes the new data as the most compelling evidence yet for an artificial origin of the Durupınar formation, its findings have not yet undergone independent review or been published in a peer-reviewed journal. The team has announced it will continue the work: in the near future it plans to examine the detected cavities with a small camera, and in the next phase to search for traces of ancient animal DNA. The current field stage of the research is led by archaeologist Cenker Atila of Sivas Cumhuriyet University, and is being carried out with official permission from Turkish authorities.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz