Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!think.com!spool.mu.edu!uwm.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: allenroy@eecs.cs.pdx.edu (callen roy) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Noahs Ark Message-ID: Date: 26 May 91 05:32:43 GMT Article-I.D.: athos.May.26.01.32.42.1991.13264 Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Lines: 63 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In response to some mail I've received, here's an update on what has happened in the past few years in the search for Noah's Ark. THE SEARCH FOR NOAH'S ARK IN THE EIGHTIES Contrary to highly exagerated claims, Noah's Ark is still in hiding, assuming that it still exists. A few individuals (Ron Wyatt and David Fasold) insist that a pile of rocks and soil in Eastern Turkey must be it. However, Christain geologists, who would like nothing better than have the Ark found, are embarrassed by the wild assertions. The Durupinar site is not even unique, there are several similar geologic formations some 20 miles away on the flanks of Ararat itself. The search for Noah's Ark has been far easier to conduct in the Eighties than it was in the Seventies. Since 1982, hundreds of sport climbers and many expeditions have been on the mountain each summer. Although there was more access to the mountain, many expeditions were not allowed to go to some of the important places they had targeted. And then there was 1985, during which a couple expeditions were captured (and released shaken, but unharmed) by Kurdish terrorists. Astronaut Jim Irwin made international headlines with his expeditions and injurites on the mountain. The cause gained impetus during the first (and so far, only) Noah's Ark Convention at Farmington, NM, in 1984. Many researchers felt that it was only a matter of time and the Ark would be found. New sightings were reported and thousands more dollars were spent. Out of this surge came, in 1985, ARARAT REPORT, a newsletter dedicated to the search for the Ark, which is indispensable for those serious in following and participating in the search. While, expeditions on the ground were doing some searching, progress in the air became dramatic. In 1986, the first flight in nearly 20 years occurred. They photographed the nearly inaccessible Ahora Gorge. But after they landed, the group, including Jim Irwin, was arrested and the film was confiscated. A small Cessna got off the gournd in late August, 1987, but the single flight was very restricted. 1988 saw a couple of successful helicopter flights, allowing observations never before seen by the searchers. The next year, 1989, several helicopter flights allowed excellent photographic opportunities and a landing near the top of the mountain. In 1990, there were ten helicopter flights which accumulated nearly 25 hours of observation time all around the mountain. Despite this remarkable, clear and unrestricted research, the Ark still remainds ellusive. If it is on the mountain, it must be covered by the ice cap most of the time. There is simply no exposed place not scrutinized by eye and camera. Probably the most important event in the search occurred in 1989. An all Turkish team, funded by Americans, conducted an exhaustive aerial photo survey of the mountain. 910, 10x10 inch, overlapping photographs were taken to provide the basis for an extremely accurate topographical map of the mountain something that has been needed for a very long time. The resolution is so good that goats, people, huts, sheep trails, and many other small details can easily be seen. Still, even with the stereoscopic views provided by the overlapping photos, the Ark has not been located. The two most reliable sightings of the Ark, Georgie Hagopian (1902, 1904) and the Russian pilot (1917,1918), claim that the permanent ice cap was melted way back due to extreme drought conditions. Such conditions have been confirmed by other sources, including weather data taken at the time. According to current data, the mountain has not suffered such ablation (melt) in 70 years or so. The Ark may not be found until another devastating drought occures in that region. Allen Roy