After 89 Years, a Team Just Landed on the Island That May Hold Amelia Earhart's Plane

The short answer

An expedition led by Purdue University and the Archaeological Legacy Institute has reached the remote Pacific atoll of Nikumaroro to investigate a mysterious submerged shape known as the Taraia Object. Researchers believe it could be the wreckage of Amelia Earhart's Lockheed Electra 10E — the plane that vanished with Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan in 1937. After nearly 90 years and 19 previous searches, this team thinks searchers may simply have been looking in the wrong place.

What is the Taraia Object?

The Taraia Object is a submerged feature sitting in Nikumaroro's lagoon near the Taraia Peninsula, roughly 10 feet from shore and under about five feet of water at certain tides. It was first flagged in satellite imagery in 2020 — and when researchers checked historical aerial photographs, something appeared to have been sitting in the same spot since at least 1938, less than a year after Earhart disappeared.

Supporters believe the shape could be the Electra's fuselage and tail sections, buried under lagoon sediment. Skeptics are not convinced: Ric Gillespie of TIGHAR, the group most associated with the Nikumaroro theory, has suggested the feature may simply be a fallen pandanus tree, and Robert Ballard's high-profile 2019 survey of the island found no confirmed wreckage.

What is the expedition doing right now?

The 17-member team arrived at the atoll's western edge on October 12 after a five-day Pacific crossing, and began its underwater survey on October 14. The plan starts with non-destructive tools: magnetometers to detect ferrous metals such as steel cabling, side-scan sonar to map anything buried beneath the sediment, and a hydroprobe to test depth and composition.

If those readings justify it, the team will use a hydraulic dredge to carefully remove sediment and expose the object, looking for the signatures that would settle the question — aluminum skin and rivet patterns matching a Lockheed Electra. And if the largest sections of the plane really are there, the team will not enter the wreckage this trip. The plan is to document it, return next year for a full excavation, and eventually bring the aircraft back to the United States. Fieldwork is expected to run about five days, weather and tides permitting, on a mission reported to cost roughly $900,000.

Why Nikumaroro? The theory behind the search

Earhart and Noonan disappeared on July 2, 1937, flying from Lae, New Guinea, toward tiny Howland Island on one of the final legs of their around-the-world attempt. Radio messages indicated the plane was low on fuel and could not find the island. The official crash-and-sink theory holds that the Electra went down in deep ocean nearby.

The Nikumaroro Hypothesis argues something different: that the pair flew on and landed on the reef flat of Nikumaroro, a coral atoll roughly 350 miles southeast of Howland. Supporters point to post-loss radio distress signals reportedly received in the days after the disappearance and to artifacts found on the island over decades of expeditions. This is the 20th organized search for the plane — and the first built around a specific object visible from space.

Why Purdue?

The university's connection to Earhart is personal. She joined Purdue in 1935 as a career counselor for women and an adviser in aeronautics, and the Purdue Research Foundation helped finance the very Electra she called her "Flying Laboratory" through the Amelia Earhart Fund for Aeronautical Research. As ALI executive director Rick Pettigrew put it in the university's announcement, the team is close to completing its inspection of the object and potentially solving a mystery that has stood for more than 89 years.

Why is this blowing up?

Earhart's disappearance is one of the most durable mysteries of the 20th century, and this expedition has the two ingredients viral stories run on: a concrete, photographable clue — a shape in a lagoon that might be a plane — and a ticking clock, with results possible within days. Even the island adds to the spectacle: Nikumaroro is uninhabited and overrun with coconut crabs, the largest land crustaceans on Earth, some three feet across. Every update from the lagoon is being watched in real time.

Key facts

• Who: A 17-member expedition from Purdue University and the Archaeological Legacy Institute.
• Where: Nikumaroro, an uninhabited coral atoll in Kiribati, about 350 miles southeast of Howland Island.
• The target: The Taraia Object, a submerged shape flagged in 2020 satellite images and apparently present since 1938.
• The method: Magnetometer and sonar surveys first, then careful dredging to look for aluminum skin and rivet patterns.
• The history: Earhart and Noonan vanished July 2, 1937; this is the 20th organized search for their plane.
• The stakes: If confirmed, large sections would be documented now and excavated on a return trip next year.

What's next?

The survey results will decide everything. Metal readings and sonar shapes consistent with an aircraft mean the dredge comes out and the world gets its first real look at the object this week. A tree trunk or a rock means the mystery survives its 20th search, and the Taraia Object joins a long list of promising leads that dissolved on inspection. Either way, an answer — one way or the other — is expected within days, and any full recovery would still need Kiribati government approval and further funding.

FAQ

What is the Taraia Object?

It is a submerged shape in Nikumaroro's lagoon, first spotted in 2020 satellite imagery and visible in aerial photos dating back to 1938. Some researchers believe it is wreckage from Amelia Earhart's Lockheed Electra; others think it may be a fallen tree.

Why do researchers think Earhart reached Nikumaroro?

The Nikumaroro Hypothesis holds that Earhart and Noonan, low on fuel and unable to find Howland Island, flew roughly 350 miles further and landed on Nikumaroro's reef. Reported post-loss radio signals and artifacts found on the island are cited as support.

Who is running the 2026 Earhart expedition?

A 17-member team from Purdue University — where Earhart worked in the 1930s and which helped fund her plane — together with the Archaeological Legacy Institute.

When will we know if the object is Earhart's plane?

The team's fieldwork is expected to last about five days. Magnetometer, sonar and dredging results during this window should show whether the object is aircraft metal — full excavation, if warranted, would happen on a return expedition next year.