New research points to authenticity of Turin Shroud

Positive & negative image of Shroud - Wiki

New research indicates that the Turin Shroud, with its mysterious image, may genuinely date from the time of Jesus. An Italian team at the Politecnico di Torino, claims the powerful magnitude 8.2 earthquake, which occurred in Old Jerusalem in the year 33 AD, would have been strong enough to release neutron particles from crushed rock.

The flood of neutrons, may have imprinted an X-ray-like image onto the linen burial cloth by reacting with nitrogen nuclei, they say. In addition, the radiation emissions would have increased the level of carbon-14 isotopes - atomic strains of carbon - in the Shroud.

According to the scientists, this may well have confused carbon dating tests conducted in 1988 which suggested the cloth was only 728 years old, and therefore likely to be a forgery.

"We believe it is possible that neutron emissions by earthquakes could have induced the image formation on the Shroud's linen fibres, through thermal neutron capture on nitrogen nuclei, and could also have caused a wrong radiocarbon dating," said Professor Alberto Carpinteri, from the Politecnico di Torino.

The new theory is published in the journal Meccanica.

Mark Antonacci, a leading expert on the Shroud and president of the Resurrection of the Shroud Foundation, is currently petitioning Pope Francis to allow molecular analysis of the cloth using the new technology.

Read the full article in the journal Meccanica here: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11012-013-9865-x/fulltext.html