A 17-person expedition has begun its journey to the remote Pacific island of Nikumaroro in search of Amelia Earhart's plane. The team will study a visual anomaly in the lagoon that some researchers believe may be the remains of the twin-engine Lockheed Electra 10E.
Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan disappeared on July 2, 1937, while attempting to fly around the world. The pair headed for Howland Island but failed to arrive there. Their plane has not been found, and the fate of the crew remains one of the most famous mysteries in aviation history.
What is the Taraia Object
The object, called the Taraia Object, is located in the lagoon of Nikumaroro, an island in the country of Kiribati, located approximately halfway between Australia and Hawaii. It was spotted in 2020 while examining satellite images. The expedition organizers point out that a similar shape is also visible in aerial photographs from 1938 - a year after Earhart disappeared.
Nikumaroro is about 640 kilometers southeast of Howland Island. The location is associated with the hypothesis that Earhart and Noonan may have made an emergency landing there, rather than their plane falling directly into the ocean. So far, this version has not been confirmed.
Sonar and magnetometers will check the anomaly
The expedition is organized by the Archaeological Legacy Institute in conjunction with Purdue University and the Purdue Research Foundation. Initially, the team will photograph the lagoon and the site, then use sonar and magnetometers to study the bottom. If necessary, activities are also planned to remove sediments around the anomaly.
“We owe it to the Amelia legacy at Purdue“ – to follow the evidence”, said Stephen Schultz, senior vice president of the university and a participant in the expedition, to CBS News. Earhart worked with the university that helped prepare her attempt to fly around the world.
The head of the Archaeological Legacy Institute, Richard Pettigrew, believes that the object could be Earhart's plane. However, this position is not generally accepted. Rick Gillespie, executive director of the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, told NBC News in 2025 that he does not believe the Taraia Object is connected to Earhart's expedition and that the area has already been examined.
The new study will need to determine whether the shape in the lagoon has dimensions, structural elements and metal characteristics consistent with a Lockheed Electra 10E. Until a final identification is made, Earhart's plane remains officially undiscovered.
Sources: cbsnews.com, nationalgeographic.com