Fossils in Just 24 Hours?

They showed it doesn’t take millions of years to form fossils! Scientists were able to make fossils from fresh specimens in just 24 hours—one day! All it took was the right conditions (mostly heat and pressure). Scientists are hoping these quick-forming fossils will help them discover more about fossils.

Under the right conditions—which the flood of Noah’s time would have created—fossils can form quickly.

Interestingly, these lab-made fossils are virtually identical to naturally forming fossils, even when the scientists looked at them under a scanning electron microscope. And scientists found some of the same features in these fossils as in natural ones, such as melanosomes (the structures that contain melanin and give feathers and skin their color). And the article also notes that “less stable materials, like proteins and fatty tissues, don’t show up in real fossils, and they weren’t present in [the synthetic fossils] either.”

This research is fascinating and points toward something creationists have been saying for decades—it doesn’t take long ages to form fossils! Under the right conditions—which the flood of Noah’s time would have created—fossils can form quickly. And remember, to make a fossil requires a catastrophic event—the plant or animal needs to be covered quickly to be preserved.

Get More Answers on Answers News

I discussed this item today on Answers News with regular cohosts Dr. Georgia Purdom and Bodie Hodge. Answers News is our twice-weekly news program filmed live before a studio audience here at the Creation Museum and broadcast on my Facebook page and the Answers in Genesis Facebook page. We also discussed the following fascinating topics:

• Australian public servants celebrate “They Day.”
• Did 42,000-year-old frozen worms come back to life?
• Study reveals how many Americans support genetic editing on babies.
• And more!

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Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.