Part 1

At first, these aerial photographs were dismissed as a geological anomaly and remain ignored for years. However, in 1960, Life Magazine published an expedition story of US Archeologists, who went to the Durupinar site. They reported that there was nothing of any archeological interest. But, in 1977 Ron Wyatt, an American Archaeologist, read the story and reviewed Captain Durupinar's photographs in reference to of Bible (Injil) Genesis 8:4 "And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat"

In Quran Surah Al-Hud verse 44 (11:44) "the ship (Kashti-e-Nuh) came to rest on [the mountain of] Judiyy". 

Mountain of Ararat is a large region on the eastern side of the Turkey , which include an area called judiyy. Ron was certain that this location was feasible to further exploration. The Factor that interest him the most was Capt. Durupinar's photographs. According to his speculations, this could be the petrified remains of Noah's Ark (Kashti-e-Nuh) . He observed that the dimensions and the length are consistent with the biblical accounts (approximately 300 cubits) Chapter Genesis 6:15 : Noah built a massive ark of gopher wood, 300 cubits long, 50 wide, and 30 high, as instructed.

But Quran has not specified the exact dimensions of Hazrat's Nuh AS 's Ark . In Surah Al-Hud verse 37 (11:37) "And build the Ark under Our [watchful] Eyes and directions..."

Finally in 1971, Ron finally made the journey to Turkey. When he saw the boat-shaped object, he was astonished that it looked just like the pictures of magazine published in 1960. He return back to US , with the decision that he need Team, Equipment and Authentic permission for excavation.

Later, in late 1978 and early 1979, Turkey was struck with 7.8 magnitude of Earthquake in the areas near eastern side of Turkey. In August 1979, when Ron finally returned to Turkey, he was overwhelmed when he noticed that the earthquakes had dropped the soil around the object and large cracks have appeared that are extending the entire length. He could see what looked to him like the remains of decayed ship's Rib timbers. He was able to measure the depth and length of the debris. It was 515 feet (exactly 300 cubits exactly like Biblical account). it was this time, that he was completely convinced that this is indeed the Great Ark of Noah (Kashti-e-Nuh AS).

He started looking for evidence of shipwreck around the area. Around the key site, he noticed what looked to him deck joists and deck support timbers

The most striking key finding was that the ancient ship was impaled on a large outcropping of limestone. On the side of the boat-shaped structure, Ron noticed unique rocks. He took several samples and send them for Analysis to Los Alamos National Laboratory. Geophysicist John Bomgardner tested the samples which showed that it was organic carbon, which were consistent with decayed and fossilised wood.

In Quran Surah Al-Qamar verse 13 (54:13) " We carried him (Nuh) on the Ark made of Planks and Nails" Quran used the word Alwah for Planks and Dusur for nails. 

In Bible Gensis 6:15 : "Noah made massive Ark of Gopher wood"

The samples from the bottom of the ship were analysed and found to be Iron (metal). Quran used the word Dusur(nails)

In 1984 Ron and Col. Jim Irwin (former US Astronaut) used metal detectors to the site, to see if there were any pattern of metal on the readings.They found distinct metal lines running down along the entire length of the object and no metal readings were obtained in the surrounding area of the boat-shaped object. (this was really fascinating discovery). They used three different types of metal detectors over the entire structure placing rocks at each metal reading and then attached tapes to show the lines. 

After measuring the length and width, the next task was to the measure depth. With the depth, Ron wanted to locate the cargo capacity of Noah's Ark, that is mentioned in the Bible (Injil) . Ron added Geologist Tom Finner in his expedition , so that he can use Sub-Surface radar after drilling holes but restriction of Martal Law paused the expedition and team had to left Turkey.

Later Turkish scientist and Archeologist took over the research of Durupinar site. Ron and his associates were allowed to join the team and took off where they left off - the sub-surface radar assessment. On investigation they found longitudinal lines showing internal structure consistent with bulkheads and rooms. Ron wanted to be sure if he was interpreting the data correctly, they send the scans to  geophysical survey systems expert Joe Rosetta. According to Rosetta, the data showed that "it is a man made structure which is not of this world engineering design"

In June 1987, Turkish government officially announced the discovery to be NOAH's GREAT ARK (Kashti-e-Nuh AS). They allowed Ron's team to dig deeper and extract samples. They found petrified section of fossilised hand made Timber (Planks). The section was five layers of wood glued together. They also found rivets (nails) samples which was made of iron, titanium and Aluminium (The properties of this metal is that they are resistant to water and have great Ultimate Strength). The specimens falling out from the lower end of ship identified as Slag (by expert in Metallurgy).This indicates that Hazrat Noah AS filled the Hull (Button of the ship) with slug - purpose was to keep the ship stable on the surface against great waves and their pressure.

In 1990, Ron performed mini-excavation using shovels. They shaved off very thin layer from one section smoothening it to show the colour difference between the structure members and the natural matrix. 

Scientific discoveries continue to fuel the belief that these remains are indeed the Great Ark of Prophet Nuh (AS). However, many people are still unaware of the profound reasons behind Allah’s command to build this vessel and the true nature of the events that unfolded.

If this ship is our physical link to the past, where is the geological proof of the Great Flood itself?

In Part 2, we will dive deeper into the life and legacy of Hazrat Nuh (AS). We will explore: The Divine Mission why was Hazrat Nuh AS was chosen for this monumental task? The Global Evidence of where can we find scientific and geological traces of the Genesis Flood? and lastly a side-by-side comparison of the descriptions found in the Quran, Hadith, and the Bible.