Scientific Errors in the Quran

Position of the Moon

The following verse is a compounded error since it mentions the position of the moon in the erroneous seven heavens. Verse 37:6 about stars in the first heaven must also be taken into consideration. The word "therein" does not reveal the exact position of the moon but any position above the first heaven would mean the moon is further away from the earth than stars which is not true. The moon is only 384,000 kilometres from earth whereas stars are light years away. Some translations say the moon is in the "midst" of all heavens which is a clear error.

"Therein" does not generally mean at the bottom or in an edge/corner. Even if the author meant that the moon is in the lowermost heaven, moonlight (reflected light from the sun) is noticeable only from the earth and it is insignificant compared to the much brighter stars which are sources of light. An all-knowing deity should not have termed the moon a light from a "heaven's" point of view.

Prophets of Islam were Sent to Every Nation

There is no evidence that prophets preaching Islam or similar beliefs were ever sent to China, Japan, Polynesia, Australia, South-East Asia, Central Asia, Scandinavia, the polar regions, most of Africa and the pre-Columbian Americas. Yet the Quran claims that every nation (or community) had a messenger.

Contradictions in the Qur'an and Hadith

Did Muhammad perform miracles?

Yes

No

Misc Issues

Errors in the Quran

Constellations are Made by Allah

Constellations are essentially human observations of stars which are themselves many light years away from each other and from the earth. Light from a star takes as many years to reach us as its distance from earth in light years. So when we see a star of a constellation, or rather any star, it may not be in that location or it may have even ceased to exist. Thus, this verse reflects an observation by a naive author who simply credits Allah for the pattern of stars. Other translations say towers or mansions of stars instead of constellations but no such towers or mansions exist in the universe.

Pending review

Scientific Errors in the Qur'an

Prophets of Islam were Sent to Every Nation

There is no evidence that prophets preaching Islam or similar beliefs were ever sent to China, Japan, Polynesia, Australia, South-East Asia, Central Asia, Scandinavia, the polar regions, most of Africa and the pre-Columbian Americas. Yet the Quran claims that every nation (or community) had a messenger.

Earth Created before Stars

The author of the Qur'an is also unaware that the elements in the Earth's crust and core were first formed in stars. Modern science has proposed that all the elements that make up the earth (Oxygen, Nitrogen, Carbon, Iron, etc.) was originally formed by nucleosynthesis in stars and then expelled into the universe when those stars supernova. Yet the Qur'an describes the earth being formed before the stars and from "smoke" or material that pre-dates stars. All rocky and gaseous planets in the universe were formed in a similar manner to the earth and the Qur'an singling out the earth only further highlights the authors ignorance of the history of the formation of celestial objects.

Earth and Heavens were Ripped Apart

Universe was Made from Smoke by Contraction

Science and the Seven Earths

Seven Layers of Earth's Atmosphere

Secondly, this claim contradicts the Qur'an. The following verse says that stars are located in the lowermost heaven.

Stars are not located in the lowest layer of the atmosphere i.e. troposphere but are light years away from the earth.

Seven Universes

Another common apologetic claim is that these seven heavens are actually seven universes which we are yet to discover.

The following verse contradicts such a claim since it says rain was made to fall from heaven. Certainly, rain does not come from outer space. The word used for heaven here is sama, the same as that for the seven heavens.

Dhul-Qarnayn and the Sun Setting in a Muddy Spring (Part Two)