The biblical miracle of Moses crossing the Red Sea has been given a scientific explanation

The study suggests that the parting of the Red Sea for Moses in the Old Testament may not have been a miracle and may have been due to “meteorological phenomena.” The biblical miracle when Moses parted the waters of the Red Sea can be explained by science.

New research suggests Moses parting the Red Sea to allow the Israelites to escape the Egyptians may not have been a miracle at all, reports the Daily Mail.

The parting of the Red Sea is mentioned in the book of Exodus in the Old Testament of the Bible. This is the moment when Moses performs a miracle that allows the Israelites to escape from the Egyptian Pharaoh’s men who were persecuting them.

But according to the University of Leicester’s School of Biological Sciences, there were four natural events that could explain the drying out of the area.

Students Rebecca Garratt and Rikesh Kunverjee argue that negative waves, easterly winds, tidal waves and so-called “Rossby waves” may have caused a surge of water large enough for people to cross the sea on foot.

In a paper published in the Journal of Interdisciplinary Topics, the scientists note: “Exploring the methods by which the waters may have receded to allow Moses to cross safely may depend on the presence of ‘ideal’ conditions, but are still physically feasible events. Meteorological phenomena are notoriously unpredictable and can lead to chaotic chains of events resulting in extreme events that may have been perceived by outside observers as a “parting of the sea.”

“Regardless of whether it is a miraculous act of God or due to some of the unlikely random phenomena discussed in this article, the likelihood of a ‘separation’ is not zero,” the authors of the publication say.

An explanation could be a phenomenon called “wind slackening,” in which strong, sustained winds can lower water levels in one area while causing water to pool downwind.

Wind speeds would have to be “significant” to keep the water away for long periods, the team said.

This phenomenon has been documented and is said to be the opposite of storm surges.

However, another possibility exists that stronger than normal spring tides, combined with windy conditions, may have caused the water level to drop enough to create a dry zone that would have allowed Moses and the Israelites to cross.

The Gulf of Suez would have been the best place for Moses to cross because it is known for its large tidal fluctuations.

The research team says: “Tidal resonance occurs when a sudden, unexpected external force, such as strong winds, excites one of the resonance modes in a local region of the Red Sea, resulting in a much more extreme ebb tide, exposing large areas of the seafloor.”

It is believed that it was this phenomenon that allowed Napoleon and his army to cross the Red Sea in 1789, the Daily Mail recalls.

In addition, the scientists’ article suggests that a natural phenomenon called Rossby waves may also be to blame. Rossby waves occur in rotating fluids and appear in the oceans due to the rotation of the planet.

The article said: “They are causing the tide to be higher than normal. Waves move huge amounts of water, which means the Red Sea incident may have moved huge amounts of water, causing the tide to recede an unusual amount, leaving shallow or no water for passage of the Israelites.”

The Journal of Interdisciplinary Science Topics was designed to help undergraduates understand scientific writing, reviewing and publishing, notes the Daily Mail.