They’re Drilling Into the Possible Noah’s Ark Site—Here’s What We Know

Cliff Buell

Download First Light and build a God-first routine by blocking apps until you read your Bible: https://firstlight.onelink.me/tenZ/qtzffd2h   Researchers are drilling into the mysterious Durupınar formation near Mount Ararat, a site some believe could be connected to Noah’s Ark. In this video, I walk through nearly 70 years of research, scans, drilling, and debate surrounding the site before breaking down what researchers are doing there today.  Are You Going To Heaven OR Hell?👇 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzmENeLZzb4&t=2s  All Important Links: https://linktr.ee/cliffbuell  Become A Channel Member: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3ap1CNrpXD-O0wWPANhQvw/join  Connect With Me: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CliffBuell Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cliffbuell/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cliffbuell  #christian #jesus #god #bible #reaction #noahsark #science #archeology #history #durupinarformation #mountararat  FAIR USE DISCLAIMER This video may contain copyrighted material that has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is used for purposes of criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, research, or education, which constitute “fair use” under Section 107 of the Copyright Act. I do not claim ownership of any copyrighted material used in this video. All rights and credit go directly to their respective owners. This content is transformative in nature — adding new meaning, commentary, or context — and does not substitute for the original works. If any copyright owner has concerns or would like material removed, please contact me directly and I will resolve the matter promptly.

Transcript

00:00Well, if you didn't know by now, they are drilling to find Noah's Ark. Yes, that is correct. They are

00:07currently drilling to find Noah's Ark. If you don't know by now, there is a formation right by

00:11Mount Ararat that looks like this right here. And many people believe that this is Noah's Ark. It is

00:17the exact length described in the Bible. There's been studies going on for almost 70 years now

00:21to determine if this really is Noah's Ark. And now they are drilling. Once again, this isn't the

00:25first time there's been drilling. I'm going to walk you through the entire history of how this

00:28formation has already been studied and show you pictures as best as I can from those timelines

00:32and then update on where we're at right now because they are actively working on this as we speak.

00:37Right where this thing is located is right where the Bible says it would be located. It's the correct

00:41dimensions. In the formation, the way that it is formed and placed and all of that does not make

00:45sense for the geography and the area around it. It is unnatural in the way that it is formed. So

00:52there

00:52is a lot of speculation that this is Noah's Ark. There's a lot of things that indicate it very well

00:57could be. All right. So I'm going to play you this video from Noah's Ark scans, who are the ones

01:02who

01:02are actively doing the digging right now to get some better context of what's going on. And then

01:05we'll take a look at the history right before we get into that though. My name is Cliff Buell. If

01:08you're new here, welcome. If you're not new here, welcome back. This channel is just to build a

01:11believer and reach the lost. And if you like Christian content, make sure to hit that subscribe.

01:15All right, let's get into figuring out if this is actually Noah's Ark.

01:19I'm standing on the very tip of the Durapanaar Formation. This is perhaps the nose of Noah's Ark.

01:25You can see it goes all the way down here. It's really huge. And right in the distance,

01:30you can see that is Mount Ararat. You can also see we've got the core drilling machine here,

01:35which is collecting soil samples, core samples, meters down into the ground. This is what a core

01:40sample looks like. It goes down, it pulls up soil from meters down in the ground so that it can

01:45be

01:46sent off to the labs to be tested to find out what is actually underneath this surface. And that is

01:51what it looks like. This is the whole Ark and it is pretty incredible to be here. So I don't

01:55know if

01:55you can see this was four days ago when this posted. They're actively doing this. There's some other

01:58videos we can look at from them, but let's get into the history of how this went down. All right,

02:01let's get into it. This is the oldest photo I could find of the Durapanaar Formation. And this was

02:06actually before it was even called that. So it's located right here. This is pretty high up aerial

02:12view. And the first documented discovery actually dates back to 1948. And this is because local

02:20accounts say heavy rain and earthquakes exposed or made the unusual boat-shaped landform much more

02:26noticeable. And so some people call this the first discovery, but the more well-documented discoveries

02:32came later. So here we have 1956. We have a 1957. You can see it right here. Then we have

02:38a 1959.

02:39While I have you here, I created an app that blocks your distracting apps until you read your Bible.

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02:52really spending time with the creator of the universe. Scrolling is no longer an excuse. I've

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03:02you

03:02too, click the link in the pinned comment below or scan the QR code. So this would have been

03:05from Ilhan Durpanar. If I'm saying his name correctly, he was a Turkish army map officer.

03:11And he noticed the formation while examining aerial survey photographs of Eastern Turkey. And it was

03:17later named after him. Here's another photo. You can see it right here. And another one right here

03:22from 1959. All right, 1960. And if you take a look, this is it right here. This is where we

03:30get an

03:30archaeological research foundation team, including Durpanar and photogrammetry. If I'm saying that

03:35right, professor Arthur Bradenberger went to the site. They dug into it and even used dynamite.

03:40After two days, they reported finding soil and rock rather than a ship and concluded that there was

03:44no visible archaeological remains. So this was essentially the first physical excavation attempt

03:48and its result was negative. Here's another photo from 1960 looking from the point onward. Then a year

03:54later, famous Turkish photographer Ara Guler photographed the formation from the air.

04:00So these photographs gave us an international visibility and are the classic old images that

04:04we see today. And then we jumped to 1977. So this photo was 1979, a little bit after this. But

04:111977

04:11was when amateur explorer at the time, Ron Wyatt, visit the formation and began arguing that it was the

04:17remains of Noah's Ark and why it became the person most responsible for reviving the worldwide interest

04:22in Durpanar. Then between 1984 and 85, Wyatt returned repeatedly. Maritime salvage expert David

04:28Fasold and geophysicist John Baumgardner became involved. Various radar, magnetic, and other readings

04:34were interpreted by proponents as evidence of an internal structure. This is when the claims like

04:39walls, ribs, metal fittings, and arc-shaped internal structures became popular. All right, I don't have

04:45photos from this next one, but in 1987, Baumgardner and Salih Bayrak Tutin and others conducted much

04:51more systemic magnetometer, ground-penetrating radar, and seismic surveys across the foundation.

04:57This was one of the first serious geophysical surveys of the entire site. Then we get to 1988,

05:03which I can show you. This is from 1988. Researchers returned with a drill rig. This is the first time

05:08it

05:08was drilled. Four core holes were drilled reportedly to roughly 10 meters depth accompanied by additional

05:13seismic work. This was the last significant core drilling effort before the current 2026 campaign that we have

05:21going on right now. So the samples were limited, and the current project says that water used during

05:25the drilling actually compromised some of the materials. So I don't think they got anything

05:28really accurate from here, but this is an image we have from that excavation. All right, so I won't

05:33have photos for the next few, so I'm going to read through them while you can look at this side

05:36-by-side

05:36comparison from 1961 to 2019. So in 1992, creationist geologist Andrew Snelling published a lengthy

05:44examination of the site and concluded that it had reasonable natural geological explanation

05:48rather than being an ark. So this was significant because skepticism was not confined to secular

05:52geologists. Some geologists who accept the biblical flood also rejected the Durapinar identification.

05:58So 1994 comes around and David Fasold, who was a part of that 1984 to 85 with Wyatt and John

06:03Baumgardner

06:05expedition that they did. Now, 1994, he was previously, right, one of the site's major advocates.

06:10He now revisits it with geologist Ian Plymer and became convinced that the formation was natural.

06:16So he flip-flopped. So that was pretty significant as well. So 1996, now Fasold,

06:22again, and geology professor Lawrence Collins published a peer-reviewed paper in the Journal of

06:26Geoscience Education. They concluded that the Durapinar was a natural geological structure,

06:31describing the alleged metal, petrified wood, and walls as natural minerals and rock structures.

06:35So this still remains one of the strongest published geological arguments against the ark

06:39interpretation. Now, fast forward to 2014, and we have a new resistivity imaging

06:45investigation that was conducted. Proponents said the electrical resistance data appeared to show the

06:50boat shape continuing underground. It revived technological investigation of the site, although

06:54the interpretation was not proof of an artificial structure. All right, and then 2019. So these photos

07:00are going to be closer to around that time. Here is June of 2020. A team performed extensive

07:05GPR, LIDAR, drone mapping, and thermal imaging. The project's investigators later reported linear

07:11slash angular radar reflections and possible right-angle features several meters underground.

07:17So here's another picture from 2019. They did additional GPR resistivity in LIDAR in 2021.

07:24And here we have one of those pictures. The 2019 scans were actually the scans that formed the basis

07:29for the claims today about having rooms, corridors, and decks. But radar shows differences in subsurface

07:35material. It does not by itself identify wood or architecture. So that is still not confirmed.

07:39Now jump to 2022. I will probably not say this correctly, but I'm going to try.

07:44Agri Ibrahim Sassin University and Istival Technical University established a research

07:50collaboration. In December, this is of 2022 again, researchers received permission

07:54to collect roughly 30 soil and rock samples. This brought Turkish university researchers directly

07:59into renewed investigation of the site. So this is kind of big. So in 2023, results and research were

08:04discussed at the International Mount Ararat and Noah's Ark Symposium. Researchers said samples were

08:09compatible with human activity in the broader region during the Chocololithic period. I don't know if

08:15I said that right. But Professor Farouk Kaya explicitly cautioned that dating the material could not

08:20establish that the Ark was there. A separate analysis of the 2019 radar data also claimed corridor

08:24or room-like subsurface patterns. All right, 2024, we're almost here. Another investigation collected

08:3088 soil samples from 22 locations inside and outside the formation. The team later reported

08:35substantially more organic material and higher potassium inside than outside. And here is an

08:41image from 2024. This was a reconstruction of Noah's Ark based on the recent GPR analysis,

08:47which this was a GPR analysis, right? So they had reconstructed what it most likely looked like

08:52based on that. In 2024, we saw arguments from proponents saying that decayed wood could produce

08:58such differences with the potassium on the outside versus the inside. And then soil chemistry alone

09:03does not identify the source as an ancient wooden ship, but there are other geological and biological

09:08explanations that have to be excluded. All right, 2025, the research group publicly discussed

09:13eventually excavating the formation, but said excavations should wait until non-destructive

09:18survey sampling and preservation planning were complete separately. Pottery fragments uncovered

09:21during nearby roadwork suggested ancient human activity in the area. The pottery demonstrates

09:25people were in the broader region thousands of years ago. It does not, again, establish the

09:28formation of the ship. So now we get to 2026. So this started June 4th, 2026. The current project

09:35received formal authorization for a new geological investigation under Professor Dr. Sankar Atila of

09:41Sivas Cumhuriyet University cooperating with NOAA's Ark scans. And then we get later in June,

09:48the major 2026 field campaign began. Around 20 scientists and students from five countries participated.

09:53The work included precision GPS grids, 3D mapping, radar scan, soil sampling, and planned dry core

09:58drilling. And then July to August, researchers completed much of the surface mapping and began

10:03intensive geophysical work. Professor Atila said the goal was eventually to dry drill targeted locations

10:08looking for evidence such as wood and potentially other archaeological material. August, new radar

10:12measurements were conducted, including a system referred to Bakhtar radar. The research team said that

10:19data appeared to reinforce earlier subsurface anomalies and helped select drilling locations.

10:23Now, September, the month that we are currently in, the project moved from scanning to physical

10:27subsurface testing. So this is the first time they're doing this since 1988. Deep core drilling

10:32officially began just a few days ago. The project says holes are being drilled into the depths,

10:37reaching as much as roughly 18 meters, which is 60 feet using dry drilling. So the cores are not

10:42contaminated by drilling fluid. Let's take a look at one of the videos of that actual drilling.

10:47So this is a video they posted today of that drilling. Take a look at it.

10:51Here on top of the arc, this is a hole that the drill has drilled

10:55meters, about 12 meters down into the arc. And we are about to put Gopher down the hole

10:59to see what he's going to find. This is a robotic RV. And it has a camera

11:03attached up front with a light. What we're doing right now is we're going to go straight down.

11:0612 meters. Oh, we're going to get 36 feet. Here we go.

11:32So

11:39all right. So honestly, kind of anti-climatic doesn't really look like they saw much of anything, but

11:44really cool that this is what they're doing. They did find an ant, but as they do more of this,

11:48right, we'll get more information. And so right now up to today, cores have been collected,

11:53including sediment and organic rich intervals. The group also reports encountering subsurface

11:56cavities. Samples are being preserved for lavatory examination, and they hope to insert

11:59a small camera robot, which we just saw Gopher into accessible voids through boreholes rather than

12:05opening a massive trench. So we'll see hopefully more of these and get more information.

12:09And then upcoming, the cores are scheduled for lavatory work, including mineralogy,

12:13microscopy, organic content, and other compositional testing. This part is probably what matters the

12:18most because laboratory analysis should be able to determine whether hard material is actually

12:22wood slash mineralized wood, ordinary rock, or something else altogether.

12:26And then 2027, Sevis-Klumheria University says, results from the first year are intended to be

12:32published as Durpanar Formation 2026 research with international scientific presentations and papers,

12:38and additional field seasons are contemplated. So, I mean, right now we're in the midst of really

12:44boiling down, hopefully, like what will determine whether this is truly Noah's Ark or not. So it's

12:49really cool to see what they're doing. And I hope this timeline helps you guys kind of figure out

12:53what's been going on, why they're doing what they're doing, and where they're kind of getting

12:57their information and data from. Now, whether the Ark is actually there or not, at the end of the day,

13:03the Bible says the Ark was a thing, a real thing, and I believe it was real. And so I

13:06do think it is

13:07quite suspicious, the size of this thing, the location, how it doesn't really make sense to be

13:12geographically a natural formation. Despite some older claims that it is one, when they looked at

13:17how it is shaped and formed compared to everything else in the area, it does not line up

13:21with natural formations. It is very obscure. And then obviously, these scans that we're getting,

13:25where we're getting some more questionable or obscure data back on the fact that there

13:30could be something underneath here, it just seems like it really could be Noah's Ark. And that would

13:35be so cool. I mean, it just would be incredible. Man, pray that this research goes well, but ultimately,

13:41that the truth, we would find out the truth of this thing. If it's not Noah's Ark, great. Let's find

13:45that out. Let's figure out what this thing is. If it is Noah's Ark, man, glory be to God. Glory

13:50be to

13:50God either way, but glory be to God, man. That would be so cool. That would be so cool.

13:54So let me know what you guys think about all this. Do you think this is actually Noah's Ark,

13:57or do you think that it is just some strange formation or maybe something else altogether

14:01under there? Put your thoughts below. If you watched the end, you're an absolute legend.

14:05Remember to subscribe if you like Christian content, but until I see you next time, I love you and God

14:09bless.

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