Scientists Say There Was No Evidence for a Great Flood — But Studies Suggest Something Wiped Out 99% of Humans 800,000 Years Ago

The Great Flood refers to a catastrophic global event that is said to have happened around the world, which is famously depicted in the Noah’s Ark biblical story. However, it is also a recurring theme among mythologies and folklore in different places across the globe.

This phenomenon suggests a shared human experience of an important event from an unknown year ago. Recently, there have been some studies that can be interpreted as evidence of the great flood happening, such as a mysterious event that nearly wiped out 99% of humans 800,000 years ago, but scientists say it is most likely from a different reason.

No Global Flood — Just Local Events

Geologists agree that no worldwide flood ever covered the Earth at any point in time. There is just not enough evidence to back up this claim aside from the shared stories of humans about a great flood across cultures.

Scientifically, there is not enough water in the planet’s system that explain how it could theoretically happen. However, we do know from geological records that intense floods happen regionally, like those around Mesopotamia, but not the same kind of flood depicted in the stories. Not one that could end up wiping out most of the humans on the planet.

Read more: Live Science

A Genetic Bottleneck Nearly Erased Us

Is There Evidence for a Global Flood? | The Creation Podcast: Episode 15

New research shows that around 800,000–900,000 years ago, our ancient relatives nearly went extinct due to unknown reasons or a mysterious event. Only about 1,280 breeding individuals are estimated to have remained out of tens of thousands during that time.

This is a phenomenon called a genetic bottleneck, which means our genetics mainly came from these 1280 people who survived. A genetic bottleneck can be defined as an event that occurs when a population is greatly reduced in size, that the diversity becoming severely limited, exposing them to the risk of extinction.

What Could Have Caused It?

This dramatic genetic bottleneck caused the population to shrink by nearly 99%, and it lasted that way for about 100,000 years before recovery. This is a far more extreme event than anything we have ever encountered before, especially in the modern era.

There are many reasons that could explain it, but nothing is proven yet. Some of the leading causes could be an abrupt change in climate, either extreme cold or drought. This is one of the top theories because it fits the ancient climate shifts during that time.

Another would be a deadly disease that spreads throughout the globe, like the recent pandemic. Since they don’t have the technology that we have now, a simple pathogen could easily cause a genetic bottleneck.

For a longer and more detailed article about why our ancestors could have almost vanished around 900,000 years ago, you can read this next: Why Did Our Ancestors Nearly Vanish Around 900,000 Years Ago, With Their Population Dropping to Just ~1,280 Individuals? — Here’s What Scientists Suggest

Read more: Natural History Museum

Why It Matters for Today

Unlike a mythical flood, this genetic bottleneck that happened 800,000 years ago had a global impact on early human populations, and its evidence can still be found in our DNA today.

It matters today because it tells us two important lessons. One is that we are not invulnerable to extinction events, no matter how smart and creative we are. Second is that these bottlenecks teach us how resilient our populations could be to be able to bounce back from nearly collapsing.

Was 99% of Humanity REALLY Wiped Out 900,000 Years Ago?

Author's Final Thoughts

There’s no scientific support for a planet-wide flood despite all the stories and folklore that we hear, and will probably continue to pass down to the next generation. However, our ancestors nearly became extinct thousands of years ago, long before modern humans ever appeared on this planet.

This is a true story that must be passed down, too. The massive population crash was not a fairy tale, but a real crisis that was recorded in our DNA. It reminds us that humanity’s story is about our resilience and desire for survival.

Read more: Scientists Say Evolution Is No Longer “Just a Theory” — It’s a Fact, and It’s Still Happening Today