What is the canopy theory?

Answer

The canopy theory aims to clarify the mention in Genesis 1:6 of “the waters above the firmament,” interpreting “firmament,” or “expanse,” as the Hebrew term is also translated, to mean our atmosphere. According to this theory, there existed a water canopy above the atmosphere until the time of Noah’s flood, when it vanished either by collapsing onto the earth or dissipating into space. It is believed to have been composed of water vapor because an ice canopy would not have survived the continuous impact of celestial objects such as meteoroids that constantly strike the earth’s atmosphere.

Although Genesis 1:20 (KJV) states that birds fly in the firmament, indicating the earth’s atmosphere, it also mentions that the sun, moon, and stars are located there (Genesis 1:14-17), implying the entire sky from the earth’s surface outward, where birds fly and celestial bodies exist. The Hebrew term raqiya, alternatively translated as “firmament” in some versions and “expanse” in others, appears nine times in the first chapter of Genesis (in verses 6-8, 14-18, and 20) and eight more times in the rest of the Old Testament (in Psalms, Ezekiel, and Daniel).

According to Genesis, prior to the existence of air, land, or any life forms, the earth was a shapeless mass of primordial water. On the second day of creation, God formed the raqiya, positioning it amidst the water, thereby dividing it into two parts: “the waters above the firmament [raqiya]” and the waters below it. The waters beneath the raqiya were called “sea” (yam in Hebrew), while the raqiya itself was named “heaven,” “air,” or “sky,” depending on the translation of the Hebrew term shamayim. However, Genesis does not assign a name to the waters above the raqiya, and there is no water above our atmosphere today, assuming that raqiya does.

As mean “atmosphere.”

Advocates of the canopy theory once speculated that the collapse of such a vapor canopy might have provided the water for the heavy rains which inundated the earth during Noah’s flood. One problem with the canopy theory, however, is the latent heat of water and the sheer quantities of water involved. If such a vapor canopy were to collapse into rain, it would literally cook the entire planet. This is because when water converts from vapor to liquid, energy or latent heat is released in the process, causing the surrounding area to heat up; this is known as an exothermic result. Conversely, when water converts from solid form—ice—to liquid or from liquid to vapor, energy is absorbed and the surrounding area is cooled—an endothermic result.

The Genesis account calls for five-and-a-half weeks of constant rain. If a canopy consisting of enough water vapor to provide that amount of rain were to collapse, it would cook the entire planet. This is not to say that there was no vapor canopy or that it did not collapse, only that, if it did, it could not have provided the amount of rain in question (the less water, the less heat).

It is interesting to note that, if a frozen canopy were able to exist in the atmosphere despite cosmic bombardment, its collapse into liquid rain would have an extreme cooling effect and might be an explanation for the commencement of the Ice Age. Despite the fact that we know that it happened, the complex factors involved in getting an Ice Age started make it seem impossible and baffle modern science to this day. Advocates of the canopy theory also cite the existence of a canopy as a possible cause for a variety of pre-flood anomalies, including human longevity and the apparent lack of rain or rainbows. They claim that such a canopy would filter out much of the cosmic radiation that is harmful to humans and cause the lack of rain or rainbows. However, opponents dispute such a canopy’s ability to produce these results.

In defense of the view t

What raqiya means is “atmosphere.” The mention in Genesis 1:14-17 of the sun, moon, and stars being there may have simply been a phenomenological statement, similar to our modern terms “sunset” and “sunrise” as phenomenological descriptions. We are aware that the sun is stationary and does not actually “rise” or “set,” despite our use of terms suggesting its movement from our earth-bound perspective.

Regardless of the scenario, there is currently no canopy above us, and any idea that there was one in the past is speculative because there is simply not enough evidence either way, except for the mysterious reference to waters above the firmament in Genesis 1:6. No one asserts with certainty what that means.