Liquefaction and destruction
After establishing that Sodom and Gomorrah may have been Bronze Age towns, that there was a reason why they might have been built on the edge of the Dead Sea, and that a strong ancient earthquake may have liquefied the ground, one important question remained. Would an earthquake of magnitude six have produced liquefaction that was powerful enough to carry away whole towns? Only the Cambridge Centrifuge experiment could provide the answer.
Dr Gopal Madabhushi and his team built structures and ground that exactly replicated conditions in the Dead Sea in the early Bronze Age. They then put this model in the centrifuge to spin it, creating 50 times the force of gravity on the model. This made the model act in exactly the same way as if it were full size. The Cambridge team then 'fired' an earthquake of strength six. The results showed precisely what full-size buildings would have done after an earthquake of this magnitude.
'The experiment pointed to a scene of utter calamity.'
The results picked up by sensors in the model were remarkable. The experiment pointed to a scene of utter calamity - the ground would have turned to quicksand, with the houses sliding as far as they could until they reached the bottom of the Dead Sea.
The Cambridge experiment vindicated Harris, showing his scenario could have happened: Sodom and Gomorrah could have been towns built on the edge of the Dead Sea, and could have been destroyed by earthquake and landslide.
When he saw the results, Harris was thrilled: 'I'm absolutely delighted - in fact I'm ecstatic.' He now hopes geologists and archaeologists will be inspired to embark on an underwater search for the ruins of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Published: 01-04-2001
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