Volcanic Destruction in the Book of Mormon: Possible Evidence from Ice Cores

• Main Author: Jordan, Benjamin R.
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: BYU ScholarsArchive 2003
• Subjects: Book of Mormon; 3 Nephi; Mesoamerica; Geology; Greenland; Antarc*; Antarctica; ice core
• Online Access: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/jbms/vol12/iss1/10; https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/jbms/article/1313/viewcontent/18564.pdf

Third Nephi 8 preserves a written account of a natural disaster at the time of Christ’s death that many assume to have been caused by volcanic activity. In a modern-day science quest, the author examines research done on glacial ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica. Ice-core records can reveal volcanic gases and ashes that are carried throughout the world—the gases are detected by measuring the acidity of the ice at various layers. Many factors influence the findings and the proposed datings of the volcanic events. The ice-core records offer some evidence, though not conclusive, of a volcanic eruption around the time of Christ’s death.