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Series Code: ASB
Program Code: ASB000105A
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00:04 And comes from the DVD series, "Awesome Science"
00:10 On May 18th, 1980, a catastrophic event 00:14 occurred that has been called God's gift to creationists. 00:18 On a beautiful Sunday morning at 8:32 AM, 00:22 Mount St. Helens erupted and caused the largest landslide 00:25 in modern human history. 00:27 Then, for nine hours, it released the explosive power 00:31 of one atomic bomb every second. 00:33 Not only was the world shocked by the eruption's 00:36 explosive power, but it also challenged the way 00:39 that secular scientists think how catastrophes 00:42 have changed this earth. 00:44 Never did creation scientists have 00:47 such a wonderful, observable laboratory 00:49 to help explain so many other geologic features 00:52 around the world by catastrophic processes. 00:55 It doesn't take millions of years 00:57 to form canyons, stratified layers, and petrified forests, 01:01 only days, weeks, and months. 01:04 All of this and more, next, on "Awesome Science." 01:12 "Awesome Science" takes you on a field trip 01:15 to some of the most amazing geologic and historical sites 01:19 around the world where we use "The Bible" as our history 01:22 guidebook to interpret what we see, 01:24 that "The Bible" can be trusted, and empirical science 01:28 falls in line with the Biblical account of creation, 01:30 the fall, and the Flood. 01:33 Science-- it's awesome. 01:35 [music playing] 01:51 The Pacific Northwest in the United States 01:54 is an amazing collection of pristine coast 01:57 land, lush valley farmland, high desert, and the Cascade Range. 02:02 The Cascade Range stretches from Northern California 02:06 to southern British Columbia. 02:08 The range was pushed up during the later stages of the Flood. 02:13 The range contains about a dozen volcanic peaks, averaging 02:16 at around 10,000 feet. 02:19 Most of the peaks are thought to have 02:20 been formed not long after the Flood 02:23 when the earth was still equalizing 02:24 from the massive tectonic shifting. 02:27 Eventually much of this volcanic activity 02:29 slowed down in about 500 years. 02:32 But a few volcanoes remained active or went dormant. 02:36 The recent increase in population centers 02:39 around these peaks has drawn concern from scientists. 02:42 The 14,400 foot dormant Mount Rainier 02:45 poses a huge threat of catastrophic destruction 02:49 if it let loose. 02:51 Another dormant volcanic peak was Mount St. Helens 02:54 in southern Washington state. 02:56 This area was a pristine, scenic wonderland 02:59 with tall, beautiful, virgin forests and deep blue 03:03 mountain lakes. 03:04 Youth camps and mountain cabins lined the shores of Spirit Lake 03:08 and the Toutle River north of the mountain. 03:11 For decades, brave mountaineers would climb the 9,677 foot tall 03:16 summit for a spectacular view. 03:21 But in March 1980, the mountain started to awaken. 03:25 At first, small earthquakes began 03:28 to rattle the countryside. 03:30 Over the next 60 days, there were over 12,000 earthquakes 03:34 each increasing in size. 03:36 Scientists knew that the sleeping giant 03:38 was about to wake up. 03:40 Then, in early April, the first steam explosion 03:43 penetrated the summit and a big hole appeared in the snow. 03:47 As earthquakes slowly increased, scientists 03:50 believed that magma was working its way up towards the surface. 03:54 In early May, a bulge began to appear on the north 03:57 side of the mountain. 03:59 It was estimated to be growing at 5 feet a day. 04:03 Like a giant balloon, the pressure was growing, 04:05 and the danger level of a large scale eruption 04:08 appeared to be imminent. 04:10 On the morning of May 18th, 1980, at 8:32 AM, 04:14 an earthquake at 5.1 on the Richter scale 04:17 signaled the eruption. 04:20 This earthquake caused a giant landslide 04:22 as one half of a cubic mile of summit 04:25 slid north into the valley below creating 25 04:28 square miles of new landscape. 04:31 The avalanche contained rock, snow, and glaciers. 04:35 When the landslide slid off of Mount St. Helens, 3/4 of it 04:39 went into the Toutle River Valley, 04:41 raising the valley floor by hundreds of feet. 04:44 As the landslide came into the valley, 04:46 huge chunks of the mountain stayed intact. 04:49 We call these hammocks. 04:52 One quarter of the landslide traveled northeast 04:54 and spilled into Spirit Lake causing an 860 foot 04:58 tidal wave across the water, washing up 05:01 onto the opposite hillside and totally destroying 05:05 the old growth forest there. 05:08 The new landslide material also permanently 05:10 raised the level of the lake more than 200 feet 05:13 above the pre-eruption level. 05:16 The landslide contained 30 glaciers 05:18 from the top of the mountain. 05:21 These glaciers were buried in the landslide, eventually 05:23 covered in ash. 05:26 After this 1,300 feet of mountain 05:28 disappeared into the landslide, a massive steam explosion 05:32 came spreading across the landscape to the north. 05:36 This steam explosion went lateral 05:39 and leveled 150 square miles, causing the old growth forest 05:43 to look like toothpicks laying on top of each other. 05:46 Usually, when a mountain erupts, the explosion goes straight up, 05:50 but Mount St. Helens did something different. 05:53 The first explosion went straight out to the north. 05:56 Having seen this kind of blast for the first time, 05:59 scientists were now able to find 300 volcanoes around the earth 06:04 that they were now able to explain using observations 06:07 from Mount St. Helens. 06:09 For the next nine hours, the mountain 06:11 released the equivalent of 40 million tons of TNT blast 06:15 energy. 06:16 That's equivalent to 33,000 Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs, 06:20 or one atomic bomb a second. 06:23 Seeing the amazing eruption, reminds us of God's power. 06:27 In Psalms 104:32, God says "who looks on the earth 06:32 and it trembles. 06:33 Who touches the mountains and they smoke." 06:36 It just take God's little finger touching 06:38 the earth and incredible power and destruction 06:41 are released at His command. 06:43 The ash and pumice cloud spread across the eastern part 06:47 of Washington state. 06:48 Cities like Yakima were turned from day to night 06:52 in a matter of hours. 06:55 As the buried glaciers in the landslide debris heated up, 06:58 they eventually exploded, causing large pits 07:01 in the landslide material. 07:04 All of the melted snow and ice caused the mud flow 07:07 down the Toutle River. 07:09 The mudflow carried ash, pumice, and rocks tens of miles 07:13 down the valley all the way to the Columbia River. 07:16 Shipping lanes were shut down because of the debris clogging 07:20 up the river. 07:22 Down the Toutle River Valley, bridges were totally gone. 07:26 Logging camps were destroyed. 07:29 Houses were washed away. 07:31 The devastation was massive. 07:34 But the events at Mount St. Helens 07:36 were small compared to an average volcanic eruption. 07:40 In past eruptions, the volcanic activity at Yellowstone 07:44 was much larger. 07:45 One of these eruptions at Yellowstone 07:47 is estimated to have been 2,500 times larger 07:50 in its destructive force. 07:53 The next day, there were 57 people dead. 07:57 And the devastation was beyond description. 08:01 In recent memory, no one had ever 08:03 seen such catastrophic destruction. 08:06 President Carter flew over the area a few days after May 18th 08:11 and described the blast zone as looking 08:13 like the surface of the moon. 08:15 But in the destruction, came a blessing 08:18 for creation scientists. 08:19 As it began to be studied, it revealed how many 08:22 geologic features around the world that could have happened 08:26 as the result of major catastrophes, 08:28 in particular, the global flood. 08:34 The Cascade Range has a variety of volcanic peaks. 08:38 Some have gone dormant. 08:39 Others have gone extinct. 08:40 And some are still active. 08:44 Crater Lake in southern Oregon is the remnant 08:46 of Mount Mazama which exploded a few thousand years ago. 08:50 And its ash can be found all around the Pacific Northwest. 08:55 Another imploded mountain is at Newberry Crater 08:58 in central Oregon. 08:59 And, like Yellowstone, it is considered active 09:02 because of its hot springs. 09:04 On the south side date of Mount St. Helens, 09:07 great ancient lava flows can be seen at the timberline level. 09:11 I would encourage you to visit this area 09:13 and tour some great geologic formation. 09:16 Most volcanoes have lava caves. 09:19 Up here, at Mount St. Helens, is Ape Cave. 09:22 It's one of the longest lava caves in the world at almost 09:25 12,000 feet. 09:27 Let's go exploring. 09:34 I've got our lantern, the bat food, and a couple flashlights. 09:39 Well, let's go. 09:43 The origin of the name for Ape Cave is somewhat unclear, 09:47 but some think it goes back to the alleged Bigfoot 09:50 sightings in the area back in 1924 where a big ape was seen. 09:55 Others say it's due to the foresters 09:58 and loggers from many years ago who were 10:00 referred to as brush apes. 10:03 Another group says it was named after a Boy Scout troop called 10:07 the Apes back in the 1950s. 10:10 This lava cave was formed when the lava 10:13 flow cooled on the top, but the hot lava still ran underneath. 10:17 Eventually, it got lower and lower 10:19 and left the cave altogether. 10:23 This type of cave formation can be seen at active volcanoes, 10:27 like Kilauea in Hawaii. 10:29 Hot lava flows through a trough. 10:31 The top of the trough cools because it's 10:33 closest to the surface, but the rest of the lava keeps flowing. 10:36 The top hardens and a lava tube forms. 10:40 Eventually, the lava stops flowing and a cave is left. 10:44 The upper Ape Cave is around 1.5 miles long 10:47 and climbs up 400 feet were cavers hike over 27 boulder 10:51 piles and scale an eight foot high lava fall. 10:55 This tunnel is about 2,000 years old. 10:58 But around 500 years ago, a mud flow 11:00 came through here and laid down a new floor. 11:04 Researchers think it is unusual for Mount St. Helens 11:07 to have produced a lava tube like this one, 11:09 because the mountain usually produced much thicker 11:12 lava with, potentially, explosive eruptions, 11:15 like the 1980 blast. 11:17 But this lava tube does exist. 11:20 And its features are good confirmation of the power 11:24 and awesomeness of God. 11:26 The lava tube also helps us understand 11:29 the formation of Mount St. Helens right after the Flood. 11:32 If this lava tube had been around for millions of years, 11:36 it would have eroded away or collapsed long ago. 11:39 Because it's so close to the surface, 11:41 and the tremendous amounts of water seep 11:43 in through cracks above, it's pretty amazing 11:47 to think you can hike down the same path 11:49 that lava once flowed. 11:50 Now this is a place where you can explore and see 11:54 God's handiwork. 11:57 The eruption on May 18th, 1980, at Mount St. Helens 12:02 was impressive. 12:03 When the north side of the mountain slid into the valley 12:05 below, it created a gold mine of research material for creation 12:10 scientists like Dr. Steve Austin who studied 12:12 many of these formations. 12:14 The valley below was covered with 600 feet 12:17 of landslide deposits. 12:19 The nine hour eruption laid huge deposits of ash and pumice 12:23 on top of the landslide. 12:24 But the mountain was not done yet. 12:27 On June 12th, not more than a month later, 12:30 another major eruption put an additional 25 feet of deposits 12:33 on Earth's newest landscape. 12:37 For almost two years, the mountain went quiet. 12:41 Then in March 1982, there was another major eruption 12:45 which melted ice and snow that had collected in the crater. 12:49 Large amounts of water, mixed with the ash and pumice, 12:52 this lahar, or mud flow, came down off the mountain 12:55 and laid another layer on top of the past layers. 12:58 The strata, layers of deposits, were forming quickly. 13:03 As the mud floor reached the north side of the blast zone, 13:06 the water came to an obstacle and began to pool. 13:10 The dammed water eventually eroded through the obstruction 13:13 and carved some amazing canyons on the valley floor. 13:17 As they looked at the layers in the canyon walls, 13:20 they saw what could have been interpreted 13:21 as individual volcanic events based 13:24 on the way the layers appeared. 13:25 Scientists call this building a sequence. 13:28 Secular scientists have held that geologic layers take 13:32 long ages to form because they hold 13:34 to the idea of uniformitarianism, 13:37 which means little change over a long period of time. 13:40 But here at Mount St. Helens, these layers 13:43 formed in a matter of hours. 13:45 And there was direct observation to their formation. 13:48 For example, the 25 foot June 12th layer 13:52 was formed in just three hours. 13:55 The layer was formed when the mountain erupted 13:57 and the hot pyroclastic flow rushed down 14:00 the northern flanks of the mountain at an amazing speed. 14:04 Because of the erosion, we can see this layering 14:07 in the canyon walls today. 14:10 If one were to explore these canyons, 14:12 they would have no idea how quickly 14:14 these layers were formed. 14:17 A uniformitarian scientist might have 14:19 guessed that there were many eruptions over long ages, 14:22 because that's the main idea which has been 14:24 taught over the last 100 years. 14:27 And the layers look similar to the rock 14:29 layers they assume took long ages to form. 14:32 Catastrophism is roughly the opposite of uniformitarianism 14:36 and was considered dead by the secular scientific community. 14:40 This was mainly because it was too closely tied 14:43 to Noah's Flood, a major catastrophe/ and the long ages 14:46 was a proven fact. 14:48 Not so. 14:49 If secular scientists admitted to a global flood of Genesis, 14:53 then that would mean that God is alive 14:55 and His judgement is sure. 14:57 Why would men who had rebellion in their hearts 15:00 want to admit this? 15:02 They wouldn't. 15:03 So the idea of uniformitarianism has 15:06 dominated the study of geology for the past 150 years 15:09 as God's word has been rejected. 15:12 As scientists looked closer at the June 12th layer, 15:15 they discovered fine and coarse materials 15:17 had been lain down as separate layers, called lamina. 15:21 What was amazing, was these lamina 15:23 had been formed in the pyroclastic flow in winds 15:26 moving over 100 miles per hour. 15:29 It would be logical to assume that catastrophic processes 15:33 would just mix up all the material into one 15:35 big homogenized deposit with no distinct layers. 15:39 But here at Mount St. Helens, just the opposite 15:42 has been observed. 15:44 In these layers, there's a feature 15:45 called micro thin lamination where 15:48 there are coarse and fine layers just centimeters 15:51 from each other. 15:52 This amount of detail is remarkable 15:54 because it has been proposed by secular scientists that 15:57 features like these take long ages to form, not minutes 16:01 or seconds. 16:03 Yet, this is what has been observed to have 16:05 happened at Mount St. Helens. 16:08 In other canyons across the earth, 16:10 we can observe many similar features 16:12 such as in the lower sandstone layers at the Grand Canyon. 16:16 Secular scientists have proposed that all sedimentary layers 16:20 in the Grand Canyon were formed by seas coming and going 16:23 over millions of years. 16:26 As the seas persisted, sediments from the waters 16:29 made the layers as particles settled out of the water. 16:32 Eventually, the seas left and the land was pushed up 16:35 to its current elevation. 16:37 There are many evidences that we can look at 16:40 to show that these layers were not made 16:42 by seas over millions of years. 16:44 Indications are that these layers 16:46 were formed very quickly by water during the year of Noah's 16:49 Flood. 16:51 As the flood waters moved around the earth, 16:53 large amounts of sediment settled out, 16:55 forming layers of sediment. 16:58 When the flood waters were receding, 17:00 they continued to dump sediments on the landscape 17:02 in very short order. 17:04 With the observable evidence left 17:06 after the eruption of Mount St. Helens, 17:08 we now realize how quickly fine and coarse layers can form, 17:12 given the right conditions. 17:14 It doesn't take millions of years 17:16 to form these types of layers, just 17:18 the right catastrophic conditions, 17:20 such as what we would expect during the Flood. 17:24 Mount St. Helens provides a miniature laboratory 17:26 for the study of particle stratification. 17:34 This program is brought to you by 17:39 An organization committed to producing high quality 17:42 science-focused television content 17:44 all from a Biblical worldview. 17:46 Awesome Science is our kids series hosted by Noah Justice 17:50 In every episode, Noah visits the national parks 17:53 and 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We hope you enjoy our great content. 18:25 As the landslide fell into the Toutle River Valley, 18:28 over 25 square miles of new landscape was developed, 18:32 some places, up to 600 feet thick. 18:37 On top of the debris field, layers of ash and pumice 18:40 were deposited. 18:41 The lush valley became a gray wasteland, similar to the moon. 18:46 After the major volcanic activity in 1980, 18:49 the mountain went quiet for a couple of years. 18:52 During this time, snow and ice accumulated in the crater. 18:56 Then, in March of 1982, the mountain came alive again. 19:01 The large amount of snow and ice melted in the creator 19:05 and broke through the fresh landscape. 19:08 It carved two huge canyons, Loowit Canyon and Step Canyon, 19:12 with depths up to 600 feet. 19:15 Not only did it erode through the ash deposits, 19:18 but also through 100 feet of solid rock from lava 19:21 flows thought to be about 500 years old. 19:25 The water then came cascading down the flanks of the mountain 19:28 and into the valley. 19:31 When it reached a large pit left from a glacier steam 19:34 explosion the, water pooled and was dammed up 19:37 to a depth of 125 feet across the valley floor. 19:41 The mudflow eventually broke through the dam hand 19:44 kept flowing to the west, down the Toutle River Valley, 19:47 carving canyons as it went. 19:51 What the mudflow left behind stunned scientists 19:54 around the world. 19:55 Just like a dam you might build at the beach, when 19:58 a dam breaks, there's soft soil like sand or ash. 20:02 The water carves through these materials very quickly leaving 20:05 canyons and channels. 20:07 As scientists went into these canyons, 20:09 they studied the newly formed strata and were amazed. 20:14 The forces of erosion carved a series of canyons 20:17 up to 140 feet deep, all in just hours. 20:22 One formation has been called the Little Grand Canyon because 20:26 of its similar features. 20:28 It is about a 140th scale model of the Grand Canyon. 20:32 Secular scientists point to the canyons around the world, 20:36 like the Grand Canyon and Zion Canyon, 20:39 and say that the small rivers in the bottoms of these canyons 20:42 carved what we see today over millions of years. 20:46 There are many reasons to suggest 20:48 this is just not the case. 20:50 A proper understanding of the evidence 20:52 after actual observation of rapid canyon formation at Mount 20:56 St. Helens led many researchers to conclude 20:59 that to carve canyons of large magnitude, 21:01 you need a lot of water in a short period of time, 21:04 not the small rivers over millions of years. 21:07 Contrary to what most scientists think, 21:10 it isn't the river that carved the canyon. 21:12 It was the canyon that formed and provided 21:14 a passageway for the river to flow through. 21:18 If one were to walk through this canyon using the uniformitarian 21:22 model of long ages, they would imagine 21:25 it took tens of thousands to millions of years 21:28 for the north fork of the Toutle River to carve this canyon. 21:31 Yet, we know from eyewitness accounts 21:33 that it happened very rapidly. 21:36 We don't have direct eyewitness accounts 21:39 to how the canyons around the world were formed, 21:41 but we have "The Bible," God's eye witness testimony, that 21:45 gives us a framework by which we can look at these other canyons 21:48 and features. 21:49 The biblical record, and subsequent models, 21:52 based on what we have observed from events we did witness 21:55 are the key to understanding these other canyons. 21:59 Here at Mount St. Helens, we were 22:01 able to see the landscape before these canyons were here. 22:05 And we know the events and mechanisms 22:08 which laid down the strata and carved the canyon through them. 22:12 Because of the events at Mount St. Helens, 22:15 even many secular geologists are junking 22:18 the idea of millions of years for the formation of the Grand 22:21 Canyon, and are thinking in terms of catastrophe. 22:26 But what type of catastrophe would 22:28 have cut the Grand Canyon and other canyons around the world? 22:32 We would have needed a lot of water 22:34 over a short period of time. 22:36 There is only one event recorded in human history that 22:39 is the key to accomplish this, the Flood of Noah's day 22:42 as recorded in "The Bible." 22:46 Just to the south of Mount St. Helens 22:48 is a fascinating feature called the Trail of Two Forests. 22:53 Around 2,000 years ago when the lava flow came through here, 22:57 there was a tree standing right in this exact place. 22:59 As the lava flowed around it, it hardened 23:02 enough against the cool wood to make a form right there. 23:05 And then the wood vaporized through the heat, 23:08 and whatever was left just rotted away, leaving a hole. 23:12 Since that time, a new forest has 23:15 grown on top of the lava flow. 23:17 Hence, the Trail of Two Forests. 23:20 An easy to use walkway has been built for us 23:23 to see this great volcanic feature. 23:26 Not all the trees were upright. 23:28 Some of them fell down and created these lateral tunnels 23:31 all across the area. 23:32 Who wants to see me go down one of these right now? 23:34 Show of hands, anyone? 23:36 [applause] 23:37 All right, your vote wins. 23:38 Here I go. 23:41 Are you certain my insurance covers this? 23:44 Oh well. 23:49 Wow. 23:55 [laughing] 23:59 That was cool. 24:00 Science, it's awesome. 24:05 It doesn't take millions of years 24:07 to form canyons, stratified layers, and petrified forests, 24:11 only days, weeks, and months. 24:14 Secular scientists have their own ideas 24:17 about how the earth was formed over billions of years. 24:20 But they leave out God's supernatural touch 24:23 and judgement. 24:24 Many of the evidences they use to support evolutionary ideas, 24:28 are better interpreted when looking at them 24:30 through the truth of scripture. 24:31 Mount St. Helens was truly God's gift 24:34 to creationists by showing us catastrophic processes that 24:37 occurred during and after the Flood 4,300 years ago. 24:42 Science, it's awesome. 24:45 Awesome Science is a video series produced by 24:50 Awesome Science Media produces many other great shows, 25:01 Ark Animals 25:07 We broadcast our episodes throughout the world 25:09 on television networks, TV stations, and online platforms. 25:14 We're making a difference by challenging the deceptive 25:18 evolutionary worldview, which directly opposes the Word of God 25:22 Our mission is to provide youth with a firm foundation 25:26 based on solid scientific evidence that supports their 25:29 Biblical worldview. We also want to encourage youth 25:33 to pursue the Truth, and maybe even make a career from their 25:36 interest in science and the Bible. 25:39 Thank you for watcing our shows. 25:41 Please keep up with us as we continue to build new content 25:44 which builds up your faith in the Word of God. |
Revised 2018-01-30