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Amelia Earhart

The Search for Amelia Earhart

by Linnea Crowther

Amelia Earhart has achieved legendary status in American history. Ever since her mysterious disappearance 75 years ago, generations have been inspired by her intrepid life… and enjoyed speculating about her fate. Some insist that her plane crashed and sank into the ocean, never to be recovered; others are just as adamant that she lived for many years after her 1937 disappearance, serving as a spy or living on a remote island or even changing her name and returning to the U.S. to live a long and anonymous life.

Amelia Earhart strides past her Lockheed Electra (Purdue Libraries)

Just as popular as the speculation has been the hands-on search for any evidence of Earhart’s plane or her remains. After her disappearance, President Roosevelt mounted a $4 million search that turned up not a shred of evidence. The search has continued in private hands in the years since, with the pieces of the puzzle still scattered — but moving closer together with each expedition.

A New Search for Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart (Wikimedia Commons)
Amelia Earhart (Wikimedia Commons)

Today, on the 75th anniversary of Earhart’s disappearance, the search intensifies with new technology.

The Hawaiian research vessel Ka’Imikai-o-Kanaloa begins its journey from Honolulu to Nikumaroro Island (formerly Gardner Island) today, bringing with it underwater robots that will search the seabed around the island. Nikumaroro has long been thought to be the strongest candidate for where Earhart crashed, and previous searches have turned up tantalizing — but inconclusive — evidence. Cosmetics containers from the 1930s, a knife like one owned by Earhart, airplane parts and more — all suggest that she may have spent time on Nikumaroro. But searchers won’t feel confident about the location of her crash site until they can find more definitive evidence — like the wreckage of her plane.

The underwater robots have a better shot at finding that evidence than any past technology has. They can dive deep into the ocean, deeper than any previous searches have ventured, and create high-quality images of what they see there. If there is wreckage, steps can be taken to preserve and examine it in hopes of an answer to the 75-year-old mystery.

Will finding Amelia Earhart’s remains change the world? No, probably not, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth the continued search. There’s something very satisfying in solving a mystery, particularly one that has eluded us for so long. And maybe even more important, there’s comfort in putting a body to rest. Earhart’s immediate family didn’t have that comfort, but maybe a new generation will.

Update October 2014: New Clues to Amelia Earhart’s Fate

A recent discovery may point to the final resting place of pilot Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan. According to reporting from Discovery.com, researchers have positively identified a piece of aluminum as part of Earhart’s Electra aircraft that disappeared July 2, 1937 over the Pacific Ocean. The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) examined the piece of metal, found in 1991 on the uninhabited island Nikumaroro, and now claims it is definitely part of the plane.

Location of Nikumaroro (via Google Earth)

According to TIGHAR, the aluminum panel is a perfect match for a piece used to make a quick repair to Earhart’s plane during a stop in Miami. Using archival photographs, researchers compared the patterns of bolts on the recovered piece to photographs of the Electra as it left Miami and determined the patterns were an exact match.

According to Ric Gillespie, executive director of TIGHAR, “Its complex fingerprint of dimensions, proportions, materials and rivet patterns was as unique to Earhart’s Electra as a fingerprint is to an individual,” Discovery reported.

TIGHAR has also examined archival photographs of the island and current sonar data, and investigators believe they have located the wreckage of the plane at the base of an undersea cliff. They are seeking financial support to return to Nikumaroro, specifically from donors looking to join the crew.

Nikumaroro Island (via Google Earth)

Learn about the other Amelia following the famous pilot’s path around the world

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