The Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on Creationism (2018)

Clarey, T.L., and D.J. Werner. 2018. Use of sedimentary megasequences to re-create pre-Flood geography. In Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference on Creationism , ed. J.H. Whitmore, pp. 351–372. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Creation Science Fellowship. USE OF SEDIMENTARY MEGASEQUENCES TO RE-CREATE PRE-FLOOD GEOGRAPHY Timothy L. Clarey , Institute for Creation Research, 1806 Royal Lane, Dallas, TX 75229 USA, tclarey@icr.org Davis J. Werner , Institute for Creation Research, 1806 Royal Lane, Dallas, TX 75229 USA ABSTRACT Knowledge of pre-Flood geography and the location of the Garden of Eden have eluded Bible-believing scientists and theologians. This study attempts to reconstruct the gross geography of the pre-Flood world by examining the detailed stratigraphy that was deposited during the Flood. Over 1500 stratigraphic columns were constructed across North and South America and Africa, recording the lithology and stratigraphy at each location. Sedimentary layers were examined using Sloss-type megasequences which allowed detailed analysis of the progression of the Flood in six discrete depositional segments. The three earliest megasequences, Sauk, Tippecanoe and Kaskaskia, were the most limited in areal coverage and volume and contain almost exclusively marine fossils, indicating a likely marine realm. The 4 th megasequence (Absaroka) shows a dramatic increase in global coverage and volume and includes the first major plant and terrestrial animal fossils. The 5 th megasequence (Zuni) appears to be the highest water point of the Flood (Day 150) as it exhibits the maximum global volume of sediment and the maximum areal coverage, compared to all earlier megasequences. The final megasequence (Tejas) exhibits fossils indicative of the highest upland areas of the pre-Flood world. Its rocks document a major shift in direction reflective of the receding water phase of the Flood. Results include the first, data-based, pre-Flood geography map for half of the world. By comparing the individual megasequences to the fossil record, patterns emerge that fit the concept of ecological zonation. The paper concludes with a new ecological zonation-megasequence model for Flood strata and the fossil record. KEY WORDS Sloss sequences, megasequences, pre-Flood geography, shallow seas, uplands, lowlands, Pangaea, stratigraphic columns Copyright 2018 Creation Science Fellowship, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA www.creationicc.org 351 INTRODUCTION Secularists, theologians and creation scientists have all had an interest in pre-Flood geography, particularly when applied to the search for the Garden of Eden (Cosner and Carter 2016; Carter and Cosner 2016; Moshier and Hill 2016; Hughes 1997; Munday 1996). The creation model is weak in its knowledge of the pre- Flood world partly because the Bible only gives us a few details of ‘the world that then was.’ Although there has been much speculation about the pre-Flood geography in creationist literature, very little has been based on empirical data. Most creationists readily admit that we know very little about the actual pre-Flood world and its geography (Cosner and Carter 2016; Carter and Cosner 2016). Other creationists have relied heavily on secular interpretations for their continental configurations and for their pre-Flood geography (Dickens 2017; Dickens and Snelling 2008; Snelling 2014a; Snelling 2014b). Very few have addressed this issue from an examination of the sedimentological record. Today, much of the Phanerozoic rock record has been divided into sequences of deposition. Sequences are defined as discrete packages of sedimentary rock bounded top and bottom by erosional surfaces, commonly with coarse sandstone layers at the base (Sloss 1963). A transgressive surface of marine erosion (TSE) marks the base of most Sloss-type sequences, representing the base of a rapid transgressive tract. A maximum flooding surface (MFS) marks the top of each Sloss sequence and represents the maximum sea level highstand. Because the terminology of sequence stratigraphy has ballooned since 1963, some researchers have begun to refer to the largest-scale sequences as “megasequences” beginning with Hubbard (1988). Several creation geologists have also adopted this nomenclature for the Sloss sequences (Morris 2012; Snelling 2014a), and therefore, this term will be used hereafter to designate the Sloss-defined megasequences. According to secular geologists, megasequences formed as sea level repetitively rose and fell, resulting in flooding of the North American continent up to six times in the Phanerozoic (Sloss 1963; Haq et al . 1988). Upper erosional boundaries were created as each new megasequence eroded the top of the earlier megasequence as it advanced. The megasequences stack vertically as shown in Fig.1. Well log, seismic data and biostratigraphic data allow correlation of the upper (MFS) and lower (TSE) unconformity bounding surfaces for each megasequence across the continents. In contrast, creation geologists take the view that most (if not all) of the Sloss megasequences were deposited during the one-year global Flood. Most creationists generally assume the Flood record began with the large-scale deposition of the Sauk megasequence, although there are locations where the Flood record may have begun earlier in localized areas, such as Grand Canyon (Austin and Wise 1994) and the Midcontinent Rift (Reed 2000). The Sauk contains the rocks of the ‘Cambrian explosion’ or the first appearance of hard-shelled, multicellular marine organisms in great abundance. For the purpose of this paper, our analysis will begin with the Sauk