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

model, a Mars size mass passing at a velocity of 10,000 ±5,000 m/s at a peri-apsis of 3 diameters (20,000 ±5,000 km) could induce the global pattern of highlands and lowlands observed today. It is possible that heat generated from the plastic deformation of a near passage was sufficient to generate large partial melt reservoirs from which the widespread volcanism observed on Mars may have been derived. C. Biblical Significance of a Near Pass Event The biblical significance of the near pass events studied in this work present themselves in four main ways: continental deformation and movement during the creation week, as a precursor or initiator to the global flood, and as a possible mechanism to the large continental sedimentation and erosion in the period after the flood, and possible Solar System events occurring during the creation week or during the global flood. The creation of celestial objects on Day Four have unknown consequences but it is conceivable that a large amounts of Solar System activity occurred and could cause some sort of geological effect during this phase. Activity realized in this time frame could also be a precursor to future cataclysmic events. The possibility of a near pass event being involved with the initiation or post-initiation events during the global Genesis flood has been theorized in many forms (Baumgardner 2013). Not considering the problems that must be overcome with such a model, the tidal disturbances created from a near pass event would cause massive tsunamis that would sweep over the continental surfaces, and could be responsible for inundating the continents causing erosion and sedimentation. Additionally, areas of unloading and residual displacement, as shown in Figures 10 and 15, could act as initiators to plate subduction in the Catastrophic Plate Tectonics model (Baumgardner 2003). Hence, an unknown interaction with the Moon or some fast moving celestial object could in fact set in motion the great Flood events. CONCLUSIONS The deformation induced from a near pass between two celestial objects was simulated using finite element analysis coupled with Seely et al. ◀ Finite element analysis of a near impact event ▶ 2018 ICC 62 Figure 11. Equivalent plastic strain for cross sections of the stationary body (model Earth) along the equatorial x-y plane calculated from the internal state variable elastic-plastic model used for the mantle material. Counter clockwise from the upper left are shown total plastic strain at time steps referenced to time of nearest passage. All plastic strains were reset to zero at beginning of the simulation step (-20,000 seconds).