One may ask, why did the Qur’an mention the partition when speaking about the divider between fresh and salt water, but did not mention it when speaking about the divider between the two seas? Modern science has discovered that in estuaries, where fresh (sweet) and salt water meet, the situation is somewhat different from what is found in places where two seas meet. It has been discovered that what distinguishes fresh water from salt water in estuaries is a “pycnocline zone with a marked density discontinuity separating the two layers.”1 This partition (zone of separation) has a different salinity from the fresh water and from the salt water2 (see figure 14). This information has been discovered only recently, using advanced equipment to measure temperature, salinity, density, oxygen dissolubility, etc. The human eye cannot see the difference between the two seas that meet, rather the two seas appear to us as one homogeneous sea. Likewise, the human eye cannot see the division of water in estuaries into the three kinds: fresh water, salt water, and the partition (zone of separation). Figure 14: Longitudinal section showing salinity (parts per thousand ‰) in an estuary. We can see here the partition (zone of separation) between the fresh and the salt water. (Introductory Oceanography, Thurman, p. 301, with a slight enhancement.) Chapter 1 Some Evidence for the Truth of Islam E) The Qur’an on Seas and Rivers A Brief Illustrated Guide To Understanding Islam 19 (1) Oceanography, Gross, p. 242. Also see Introductory Oceanography, Thurman, pp. 300-301. (2) Oceanography, Gross, p. 244, and Introductory Oceanography, Thurman, pp. 300-301.
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