Drilling begins at Turkey’s Durupınar formation as researchers probe possible Noah’s ark site

Researchers have begun drilling at the boat-shaped Durupınar Formation in eastern Turkey, collecting core samples as part of a new investigation into a site that some believe could contain the remains of Noah’s Ark.

The formation, located about 29 kilometres south of Mount Ararat, has attracted attention for decades because of its distinctive shape and similarities in length to descriptions of the biblical vessel.

The latest investigation follows ground-penetrating radar surveys that researchers say revealed unusual underground features, including linear structures, right-angle intersections and cavity-like spaces interpreted by the team as possible corridors and chambers. However, the findings have not established that the structures are man-made or that the formation is connected to Noah’s Ark. Many geologists have historically regarded Durupınar as a natural geological formation.

The 2026 project is being directed in Turkey by Professor Cenker Atila of Sivas Cumhuriyet University’s Department of Archaeology, according to Noah’s Ark Scans, the group involved in the investigation. Researchers are collecting core samples from inside and outside the formation for laboratory analysis, with tests expected to examine the geological layers, composition and organic material recovered from the site.

Andrew Jones, founder of Noah’s Ark Scans, said the group believes its latest findings strengthen the case that the formation may not be entirely natural. Jones said radar surveys and drilling had not encountered the limestone or solid bedrock that researchers expected under some geological explanations for the formation.

“This destroys the theory the site is a solid limestone block shaped into a boat by glaciers and weathering after coming down the mountainside, and it also refutes the theory that this is bedrock around which mud flowed to form the shape,” he said. Jones nevertheless acknowledged that the evidence does not prove the formation is Noah’s Ark.

“I firmly believe the Durupınar Formation represents the buried remains of Noah’s Ark,” he said, while describing the radar findings as compelling but not conclusive evidence of possible non-natural structures. A radar survey conducted in 2019 reportedly identified linear and angular anomalies that the team interpreted as possible walls, passageways and compartments.

Further surveys carried out in 2026 using deeper-penetrating radar detected additional layered features and what researchers interpreted as sediment-filled cavities. The team said five anomalies appeared to form a tunnel-like system measuring about 151 feet in length, while other underground features were detected at varying depths.

Researchers also reported finding a thick underground layer that appeared to contain three subdivisions. Some members of the project have drawn comparisons between those layers and the three decks described in the biblical account of Noah’s Ark, although the radar findings alone cannot establish such a connection.

The radar readings are not photographs of underground rooms or structures. They show differences in how radar signals reflect from subsurface materials, meaning physical investigation is required to determine what caused the anomalies. Core drilling has also recovered material containing organic matter, which researchers plan to analyse to determine its composition and age.

Claims that the team has discovered ancient or petrified wood have not yet been scientifically confirmed, and no recovered material has been established as being approximately 4,300 years old. Jones said the 4,300-year figure sometimes associated with the site comes from a proposed biblical chronology for the flood rather than a scientific dating of material recovered from Durupınar.

Organic material would need to be isolated and subjected to appropriate scientific testing, including radiocarbon dating where applicable, before researchers could establish its age. Lauren Witzke, marketing and fundraising director for Noah’s Ark Scans, has made stronger claims about the significance of the investigation, saying she believes parts of an ancient wooden structure remain beneath the surface.

“The top, and most exposed, tier is decaying, and the hardened mudflow encasing the rims of the boat are basically the only thing holding it together,” Witzke said. “It’s very fragile, as to be expected with 4,300-year-old wood. But beneath the surface, the bottom two layers appear to still be intact, and we believe we have hit a floor of petrified wood.”

Those claims remain unverified pending laboratory testing. Witzke has also argued that evidence from the site could support a catastrophic global flood and challenge established scientific accounts of evolution. Those assertions go considerably beyond what the drilling and radar surveys have demonstrated so far.

Pottery discovered around the formation has also been cited by members of the project. The artefacts reportedly span periods from the Chalcolithic through the Iron Age, indicating human activity in the wider area over a long period. Witzke suggested some of the pottery could have been associated with occupants of the Ark, but Jones acknowledged that pottery found near the formation cannot establish that the site is Noah’s Ark or connect those who left the artefacts to the biblical account.

The Durupınar Formation gained international attention after Turkish Army Captain İlhan Durupınar identified its ship-like outline in aerial photographs in 1959. The formation measures roughly 157 metres, or 515 feet, in length, a dimension supporters have compared with estimates derived from the description of Noah’s Ark in the Book of Genesis.

Earlier investigations, however, reported finding soil and rock rather than archaeological remains of a vessel, and the formation has widely been interpreted by geologists as a natural feature. The research team says its next phase could include the use of a specially designed underground robot called “Gopher,” which would be inserted through narrow openings to investigate cavities that cannot safely be entered by researchers.

Jones said the current drilling programme represents an important shift from relying primarily on remote scans to collecting material that can undergo laboratory testing. “What excites me most about this phase is that we are transitioning from remote imaging to collecting physical samples deep within the site, allowing us to scientifically evaluate hypotheses that have been debated for decades,” he said.

For now, the Durupınar Formation’s connection to Noah’s Ark remains unproven. Results from the core samples and further examination of the underground anomalies will be needed before researchers can determine whether the features are geological or evidence of a man-made structure.