A map shows the remote Pacific island where Amelia Earhart is believed to have ended her ill-fated attempt to fly around the world nearly 90 years ago, as researchers arrive on land to investigate a suspected wreck that may finally reveal the fate of the pioneering aviator and her missing plane.
A 17-person expedition supported by Purdue University is investigating an underwater object at Nikumaroro, an uninhabited coral atoll in the Republic of Kiribati, that researchers believe may be part of Earhart’s Lockheed Electra 10E aircraft.
The object, dubbed the “Talaya Object,” appears in satellite images of the island’s lagoon. Its elongated shape led researchers to suspect it could be the fuselage and tail of Earhart’s missing plane.
The team from Purdue University and the Archaeological Heritage Institute (ALI) arrived on Monday after a five-day, 830-nautical-mile voyage to the South Pacific. Researchers plan to use sonar, magnetometers and other archaeological techniques to examine the object and determine what lies beneath the sediment.
If the object turns out to be part of Earhart’s aircraft, it could provide important evidence about what happened during her final flight in July 1937.
Researchers told CNN that on Tuesday, the team used chainsaws and machetes to clear an overgrown path leading to the island’s lagoon, establish a staging area and begin assessing the research site newsweek. They encountered at least four of the island’s giant carnivorous coconut crabs along the way, but reported that they “posed no threat to the operation.”
Members also walked the sand spit of the Talaya Peninsula in search of artifacts, while a maritime archeology team examined conditions at the bottom of the lagoon ahead of field work set to begin on Wednesday.
“This case took a long time,” ALI Executive Director Dr. Richard Pettigrew told us newsweek Had an exclusive interview before. “But we have some new evidence. There is an object visible in Nikumaroro Lagoon. Everything we see indicates that it is very possible, even likely, that this is the wreckage of Amelia Earhart’s plane.”
Amelia Earhart’s final flight path
Earhart disappeared on July 2, 1937 while attempting to become the first woman to fly around the world along the equator.
Her journey began in Oakland, California, in May 1937. Accompanied by navigator Fred Noonan, she traveled east across the United States, then through the Caribbean, South America, Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Australia.
At the end of June, the two arrived in Lae, New Guinea, now Papua New Guinea. Their next destination is Howland Island, a remote island in the Pacific Ocean where they plan to refuel before continuing their journey.
The flight from Lae to Howland is one of the most challenging of the entire journey, covering approximately 2,550 miles over the high seas.
The Earhart and Noonan took off from Lae on July 2. U.S. Coast Guard cutter Itasca Stationed near Howland Island, assisting with radio communications and navigation.
But the plane never arrived.
Earhart reported difficulties communicating with the ship and said it was low on fuel. Her last known transmission was to Itasca Position navigation lines were given, but her exact location was not determined.
The plane, Earhart and Noonan were never found.
The popular official explanation is that the plane ran out of fuel and crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Howland Island. The Nikumaroro theory offers a different possibility: the pair missed their intended destination, continued searching for land, and ultimately made an emergency landing on an atoll.
Nikumaroro is located approximately 400 miles southeast of Howland Island. Researchers investigating Talaya hope to help determine whether Earhart and Noonan reached the island by examining suspected debris.
What you need to know about Nikumaroro Island
Nikumaroro is a remote coral atoll in the Phoenix Islands of Kiribati in the central Pacific Ocean. Formerly known as Gardner Island, it is surrounded by coral reefs and has a lagoon in the center.
The island is now uninhabited and is located far from major population centers, posing logistical difficulties for archaeological surveys.
The island has intrigued Earhart researchers for decades because of the possibility that she and Noonan could have made an emergency landing there and survived.
Supporters of the castaway theory point to historical reports of human remains found on the island in 1940, as well as artifacts that may be related to the castaways. Evidence has not conclusively determined that the remains belong to Earhart or Noonan.
The latest expedition focuses on specific underwater targets rather than searching the entire island or surrounding ocean.
Researcher Michael Ashmore first noticed Talaya in satellite imagery in 2020. Researchers believe changes in the lagoon’s sediments may have exposed part of the object, making its shape easier to see.
The team plans to systematically survey the area, using magnetometers to detect certain metallic components and sonar to examine objects beneath the lagoon floor. The water detector will help researchers assess an object’s depth, orientation and surface composition. The sediment can then be removed using a water induction dredge for visual inspection.
The expedition was supported by Purdue University, where Earhart served as a career counselor and aviation consultant from 1935 to 1937. The Purdue Research Foundation also funded the plane she used on her final journey.
“Our intent is to explore bringing that back to Purdue,” Kelly Hiller, Purdue’s chief marketing officer, said in an interview. newsweekBefore. “This has always been the plan – Amelia and her husband wanted the aircraft to return for further research and teaching. Now we do have the opportunity to do that.”
Currently, the mission is an investigation rather than a recovery operation. Even if researchers find plane wreckage, further permits and work will be needed to bring any substantial remains back to the surface.
Nikumaroro’s giant carnivorous robber crab
Nikumaroro is home to the giant coconut crab (also known as the robber crab), one of the largest land arthropods in the world. They are scavengers and omnivores, capable of feeding on a variety of plant and animal materials.
Coconut crabs are known for scavenging carcasses, and their strong claws allow them to invade food sources that may be difficult for other animals to access. The expedition even cited their size and nocturnal activity as reasons for sleeping on support ships rather than on islands.
Their presence raises questions about whether Earhart or Noonan would have eaten their remains if they had died on the island. But so far, there’s no conclusive evidence of this.
Human skeletons found in Nikumaroro in 1940 were reportedly examined by authorities at the time, but the remains were subsequently lost. Their identity remains a subject of debate.
Some researchers believe that historical skeletal measurements may be consistent with Earhart’s ideas, while others highlight the limitations of the existing evidence. No clear identification has been made.
Amelia Earhart’s distress call
Earhart’s final radio transmission remains one of the most important pieces of evidence in the search for the missing plane.
As Earhart approached the area around Howland Island on the morning of July 2, 1937, she struggled to Itasca. The ship attempted to guide her to the island, but communication and navigation difficulties complicated the effort.
According to historical radio records, at approximately 7:42 a.m., Earhart reported that she believed the plane was near the ship but that she could not see it. She also reported that she was low on fuel and that she was flying at an altitude of approximately 1,000 feet.
this Itasca An attempt was made to respond, but the aircraft did not appear to be reliably receiving the ship’s signal.
Shortly before 8 a.m., Earhart reported circling and requested bearings. The crew continued to work to determine their position.
Around 8:43 a.m., Itasca Records what is generally believed to be the final transmission received from the aircraft. Earhart reported that the aircraft was on a route described as 157-337, traveling north and south.
The transmission did not provide a confirmed location, leaving rescuers with no clear idea of where the plane went.
The U.S. Navy and Coast Guard subsequently conducted a massive search, but neither the aircraft nor those on board were found.
The radio recording has since become the centerpiece of competing interpretations of the disappearance. Conventional theory holds that Earhart and Noonan ran out of fuel and crashed into the ocean near Howland Island. Supporters of the Nikumaroro theory believe the pair may have continued searching for land and eventually reached the atoll. If investigators determine that the Talaya object is a plane wreckage and can identify it as Earhart’s Electra, the latest expedition may help settle some of the debate.
newsweek’s Reporters and editors used our artificial intelligence assistant Martyn to produce this story. Learn more about Martin here. Please contact Newsweek editors about this story: Samantha Beach and Edward T. Cummins