Hydroplate theory - an evaluation
Hydroplate theory - an evaluation
Hydroplates at wikipedia
Walt Brown's YouTube video
Hydroplate apologetics
According to Walter Brown's "hydroplate theory" subterranean water burst through the Earth's crust causing a catastrophic worldwide flood. It's best understood by comparison to legitimate scientific theories such as plate tectonics. To begin with "hydroplate theory" is a hypothesis, not a legitimate scientific theory. It neither makes the broad predictions, nor has it survived the rigorous scrutiny required of a scientific theory. Inconsistencies of the "hydroplate hypothesis" have been widely noted, but obvious methodological shortcomings are less well documented.
The theory of plate tectonics arose from geographical observation. The west coast of Euroafrica fits well with the east coast of America suggesting the continents were once joined. This makes testable predictions. Geological continuities should accompany the geometric fit. Geologists (primarily South African) found the predicted continuities, but only the discovery of the mechanism (sea floor spreading) lead to general acceptance.
The hydroplate hypothesis is based not on empirical observation, but on biblical predictions. The hypothesis is justified not by discovering predicted geological features, but by consistency with the Bible. The process of constructing explanations to conform with beliefs (texts) is known as apologetics. The explanations themselves are "just so stories"
John Baumgardner, another apologist who seeks to justify Biblical catastrophism, adopts an engineering approach, attempting to show that such processes are feasible. Like Brown he makes no geologically testable predictions. He concludes that his model requires only two miracles (massive heat dispersal and accelerated radiometric decay.)
It's also worth considering how often and how much sea level has risen in recorded history from bursts of subterranean water. The answer is of course there is no example of detectable sea level rise from this mechanism. Furthermore vast reserves of metastable subterranean water seem roughly as plausible as Santa Claus at the North Pole.