Will a New Investigation Finally Reveal What Happened to Amelia Earhart?
Today, July 2, marks the 75th anniversary of when legendary pilot Amelia Earhart disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while trying to fly around the world. Now, new light may be shed on the mystery that's always surrounded the incident.
Robert Ballard, the man who famously found the wreckage of the Titanic, is working with the International Group For Historic Aircraft Recovery to search an area far away from where it was assumed Earhart's plane went down.
They think that instead of crashing into the ocean, she actually crash-landed on the island of Nikumaroro and that the tide later took the plane out to sea. The remains of a woman have already been found on Nikumaroro, and while the original search for Earhart included the island, investigators didn't look that closely because no plane wreckage was seen.
The US Transportation Cabinet and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton support Ballard's new expedition, with Clinton saying in a statement, “Even if you do not find what you seek, there is great honor and possibility in the search itself ... So, like our lost heroine, you will all carry our hopes ... We are excited and looking forward to hear about your own great adventure.”