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

of primary ore deposits to weathering and supergene mineral formation over subsequent decades. The supergene minerals produced by all that weathering should thus have similar or even identical radioisotope ages, which can thus be used as identical relative ages to correlate the progressive onset of weathering at the same time at various stages on different continents in the decades after the Flood ended. This methodology, depending on how the timing of the onset of weathering is interpreted in relation to the timing of the Flood/post-Flood boundary, could help us determine the placement of that boundary in the geologic record. 2. The Integrity and Usefulness of the Geologic Record There has also been considerable debate about the integrity and usefulness of the so-called geological column, as if the diagram in textbooks does not match the realities of the observable rock record (Reed and Oard 2006). Resolving misunderstandings on this issue is fundamental to building a consistent viable Creation- Flood model that explains the observed details of field data of the literal physical rock record. Creationist research has demonstrated conclusively that both individual fossil-bearing sedimentary units and megasequences of fossil-bearing sedimentary layers can be traced across continents and even between continents, precisely the evidence expected to be left behind by the global Flood cataclysm (Clarey 2015b, c, 2017; Morton 1984; Snelling 2008, 2009, 2015, 2016b, 2017b). Such transcontinental correlations of rock units underpin the construction of the geological column, ensuring its reality and integrity (Tyler and Coffin 2006). Even Oard (2010a) had to admit that “the geological column is a general Flood order”. Of course, there will always be a few minor exceptions because our knowledge is incomplete, and mistakes can be made by fallible humans, but ongoing field work and research continue to add to this “big picture”. Thus, in this study the integrity and usefulness of the geological column as the geologic record of earth history within the biblical chronology, especially the Flood, is accepted and utilized. 3. The Chronology and Actions of the Retreating Flood Waters The biblical account suggests that the Flood ended when Noah stepped off the Ark where it had landed on “the mountains of Ararat” months earlier on Day 150 (Genesis 8:4). It is generally agreed that the Flood waters were at their peak on Day 150 of the Flood, even if they had first peaked by Day 40, and they then started subsiding from Day 150 onwards (Anderson 2014; Snelling 2014a). However, the rate at which the waters receded is unclear, though the water level likely dropped slowly at first because it was only some 74 days later on Day 224 that “the tops of the mountains were seen” (Genesis 8:5), though it should also be kept in mind those mountain peaks may have risen above the waters due to the mountain-building tectonic forces of catastrophic plate tectonics (Austin et al. 1994; Snelling 2009, 2014b). And subsequently the text describes the waters being “on the face of the whole earth” (Genesis 8:9). After that, it took another 90 days until Day 314 for the waters to be “dried off the face of the earth” and “the face of the ground” to be dry (Genesis 8:13) (Snelling 2009). Even then Noah waited another 57 days until Day 371 before “the earth had dried out” sufficiently for God to instruct Noah, his family and the animals to leave the Ark, thus ending the Flood event (Genesis 8:14-19) (Snelling 2009). It should already be evident that these considerations have implications for modeling of the geology, geophysics and paleontology of the Flood event. For example, the peaking of the Flood waters so that all flesh died has implications for when the fossil-bearing strata were deposited globally (Snelling 2014c), while the rising of the mountains has implications for when catastrophic plate collisions and isostatic uplift occurred to form today’s mountain ranges (Snelling 2014b). And the timing and rate of subsiding water levels of the retreating Flood waters and their concurrent actions and motions would have implications for the erosion of the host rocks covering primary ore deposits. If erosion was too severe, not only would the cover rocks be eroded away, but the primary ore deposits as well. Radioisotope dating of the supergene minerals would provide relative dates of their formation. Another significant stipulation should also be made here. When Noah stepped off the Ark to end the Flood event, even though the earth had dried out does not necessarily mean all residual geological and geophysical processes had ceased. Austin (1998) has documented that volcanic activity has decreased since the Flood, and Austin et al. (1994) postulated decelerating plate movements and collisions into the early post-Flood era. Thus, even ongoing volcanic and seismic activity today can be regarded as a consequence of the Flood. Furthermore, modeling post-Flood hypercanes generated by the warmer ocean waters at the end of the Flood (due to all the hot waters released from the fountains and via volcanism during the Flood), Vardiman (2003, 2012) demonstrated how intense storms would have dumped torrential rainfall on parts of the continents. Whitmore (2013) thus argued there was potential for resulting widespread post-Flood erosion and mass wasting processes. Therefore, while it was safe and dry for Noah to step off the Ark into the area in and near “the mountains of Ararat”, in other parts of the globe residual catastrophism could still have been eroding and depositing strata, and there could have been volcanoes erupting and mountains still rising, with ocean waters still covering continental areas that today are high and dry. 4. The Timing of Weathering and Formation of Supergene Minerals Before the significance of the timing of weathering to form supergene minerals can be determined, it is crucial to discuss the timing of formation of the primary (hypogene) ore deposits, especially those that were subsequently exposed to chemical weathering. It should be first noted that not all porphyry copper deposits are of Cenozoic age. Seedorff et al. (2005, Fig. 2, p.255) document that the formation of about a third of the porphyry copper deposits conventionally date back through the Mesozoic and Paleozoic to almost 500 Ma, including in the Andean and Rockies regions. Yet it is only the very latest Mesozoic and Cenozoic porphyry copper deposits that have been subject to supergene oxidation and enrichment (Sillitoe 2005), in spite of the fact that the older porphyry copper deposits are today located within 1000 m of the land surface. This is clearly due to the present arid climate conditions in the Andes and the American Southwest which are conducive to supergene processes, which thus links these supergene minerals to Snelling ◀ Flood/post-Flood boundary ▶ 2018 ICC 557