Stars, Cells, and God | Saving Radio Astronomy and Dating Bible Battles
Join Hugh Ross and Jeff Zweerink as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science—discoveries that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.
Saving Radio Astronomy
The last unspoiled refuge for radio astronomy is the Moon’s far side—the most “radio quiet” place in the solar system. There, researchers hope to place four 3-meter antennae to measure the “cosmic dawn,” the radio signal from the universe’s first stars that will reveal the characteristics of those stars and evidence for the big bang. However, international lunar exploration could generate so much noise as to eliminate radio astronomy’s last unspoiled refuge. In this episode, Hugh discusses how radio astronomers hope to protect this frontier.
References:
Are Telescopes on the Moon Doomed before They’ve Even Been Built?
Dating Bible Battles
Archaeologists have discovered many sites where battles described in the Bible occurred, but determining the dates has been difficult. Recent advances in measuring magnetic field strengths provide a new dating tool. During the tenth to sixth century BCE, Earth’s magnetic field experienced fluctuations much larger than seen today. Many of the battles during this time involved burning opponents’ cities to the ground, and these fires often heated mud bricks and pottery pieces to temperatures hot enough that the pieces recorded the magnetic field and direction at the time. Scientists have used these magnetic field measurements in artifacts to validate the historicity of many battles recorded in Scripture. Listen to find out how.
References:
Reconstructing Biblical Military Campaigns Using Geomagnetic Field Data
Earth’s Magnetic Field Supports Biblical Stories of Destruction of Ancient Cities