On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the Lord in the presence of Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.” And the sun stood still and the moon stopped until the nation took vengeance on its enemies. Isn't this written in the Book of Jashar? So the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed its setting almost a full day. Joshua 10:12-13 HCSB
There is an account of how NASA used computers to calculate the position of the planets and discovered a day missing. They noted that there was 23 hours and 20 minutes missing from Joshua's time and then the other 40 minutes was accounted for in the story of when King Hezekiah asked for the shadow of the sun to go back 10 degrees. This story is false and does not provide any scientific evidence that the sun actually stood still in Joshua's time.
It is believed that Joshua asked God for more daylight so they would have the time needed to defeat the enemy. Answers in Genesis says: “We know the accounts in Joshua and 2 Kings are real events in history. In no way do we dispute the historical accuracy of the Bible. However, the tale of the scientific discovery of Joshua’s lost day and Hezekiah’s extra minutes is a fable—another argument a Christian should not use.” Creation Ministries says: “The Word of God can, and must, be defended. But let us make sure we do not defend it with a “broken sword.”
Challenge: Just as we accept the fact that the Red Sea was parted and the Israelites walked through on dry ground, we must accept this story as true and factual even if there is no scientific evidence that the sun actually stopped for almost a day. There are many miracles in the Bible that we must accept on faith. God is an awesome and powerful God who is capable of creating the universe and everything in it. Therefore, He is also more than capable of parting waters, stopping the sun, and even walking on the water and calming the storms. Praise God for who He is – the Great I Am!