MH370 search finds uncharted shipwreck

[webfact]

MH370 search finds uncharted shipwreck

SYDNEY (AFP) - The hunt for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 has uncovered a previously uncharted shipwreck, leading officials to say Wednesday that if the plane is in their search zone they will find it.

The Australian-led team is scouring the southern Indian Ocean seabed in hope of finding the final resting place of MH370, which vanished on March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

No wreckage from the flight, which was carrying 239 people, has ever been found.

In an update on the search, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau said it had spotted "multiple small bright reflections" on the otherwise featureless seabed which warranted close inspection.

Data from a high-resolution sonar scan using an autonomous underwater vehicle revealed possible items, mostly only about the size of a cricket ball, some 3,900 metres (12,795 feet) underwater.

While the debris field appeared to be of man-made origin, it failed to have all the characteristics of a typical aircraft debris field so authorities sent down an underwater camera which discovered the shipwreck.

"It’s a fascinating find," said Peter Foley, director of the operational search for MH370. "But it’s not what were looking for."

Images clearly showed an anchor, along with other objects which the searchers said were man-made.

Foley said officials were not pausing in the search for MH370, whose disappearance is one of aviation’s great mysteries.

"Obviously, we’re disappointed that it wasn’t the aircraft, but we were always realistic about the likelihood," he added in a statement.

"And this event has really demonstrated that the systems, people and the equipment involved in the search are working well. It’s shown that if there’s a debris field in the search area, we’ll find it."

The search for the aircraft has been a complex undertaking, with Australia concentrating on a remote area of the southern Indian Ocean far off its west coast spanning 60,000 square kilometres (23,166 square miles).

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/MH370-search-finds-uncharted-shipwreck-30259987.html


-- (c) Copyright AFP 2015-05-13

[steven100]

gold and treasure found in shipwreck .....

[noahvail]

I'm sure it's been geotagged and the salvage claim already registered by Australia.

[Credo]

If they want to find that plane then just tell most of Asia that the plane was carrying a secret cargo of gold and watch 1/2 of China and much of SE Asia heading out to find it.

[steven100]

the shipwreck bounty said to hold 100's of millions $$$ worth of gold and coins. ....

[mikeinbangkok]

If they want to find that plane then just tell most of Asia that the plane was carrying a secret cargo of gold and watch 1/2 of China and much of SE Asia heading out to find it.

Totally insensitive and inappropriate comment considering families and loved ones of those 300 victims are suffering and still having hopes of finding the bodies. Only someone with no feelings and no heart, not to mention no brains, could make an idiotic comment like this.

[Credo]

If they want to find that plane then just tell most of Asia that the plane was carrying a secret cargo of gold and watch 1/2 of China and much of SE Asia heading out to find it.

Totally insensitive and inappropriate comment considering families and loved ones of those 300 victims are suffering and still having hopes of finding the bodies. Only someone with no feelings and no heart, not to mention no brains, could make an idiotic comment like this.

Maybe not appropriate, but not insensitive. There is basically one country doing the looking. It might be a good idea to get some more people out looking for it. If anything is insensitive, it is that.

[ExPratt]

I was going to make a joke about Chinese peoples hand luggage and an Anchor

But I wont , must be terrible for the relatives to not know what happened or where there loved ones lie

RIP

[impulse]

Gotta wonder what's in their search contract.

A government is paying for the search effort. Does that mean any treasure found on their dime goes to the coffers of the Aussies?

On the significance of the find, I'm sure there are hundreds, if not thousands of uncharted shipwrecks in the area. Other than publicity to remind the world they're still out looking, I'm not sure why finding one of them is newsworthy.

Edit: In fact, if this is the first wreckage they've located, I'd have serious doubts about why they haven't found dozens more- they are out there.

Edited May 14, 2015 by impulse

[mikeinbangkok]

If they want to find that plane then just tell most of Asia that the plane was carrying a secret cargo of gold and watch 1/2 of China and much of SE Asia heading out to find it.

Totally insensitive and inappropriate comment considering families and loved ones of those 300 victims are suffering and still having hopes of finding the bodies. Only someone with no feelings and no heart, not to mention no brains, could make an idiotic comment like this.

Maybe not appropriate, but not insensitive. There is basically one country doing the looking. It might be a good idea to get some more people out looking for it. If anything is insensitive, it is that.

Insensitive= lacking feeling or tact- Source Merriam-Webster ...Enough said!

[ExPratt]

If they want to find that plane then just tell most of Asia that the plane was carrying a secret cargo of gold and watch 1/2 of China and much of SE Asia heading out to find it.

Totally insensitive and inappropriate comment considering families and loved ones of those 300 victims are suffering and still having hopes of finding the bodies. Only someone with no feelings and no heart, not to mention no brains, could make an idiotic comment like this.

Maybe not appropriate, but not insensitive. There is basically one country doing the looking. It might be a good idea to get some more people out looking for it. If anything is insensitive, it is that.

I think the stumbling block is the equipment required , The US have given the most advanced equipment. The problem is obviously the depth , there are not many sonars with pinpoint accuracy that operate efficiently at a depth of 4 k plus

[Seastallion]

Gotta wonder what's in their search contract.

A government is paying for the search effort. Does that mean any treasure found on their dime goes to the coffers of the Aussies?

On the significance of the find, I'm sure there are hundreds, if not thousands of uncharted shipwrecks in the area. Other than publicity to remind the world they're still out looking, I'm not sure why finding one of them is newsworthy.

Edit: In fact, if this is the first wreckage they've located, I'd have serious doubts about why they haven't found dozens more- they are out there.

Nonsense...."a remote area of the southern Indian Ocean far off its west coast ". That area was never a sea-route. Even with hundreds of years of shipping, it is likely that less than a dozen ships have ever sailed above that 60 000 sq km of seabed, let alone sunk.

[otherstuff1957]

^ Prior to the opening of the Suez Canal most ships bound from Britain to Australia would pass through those waters, so there probably are hundreds of wrecks in that region. However, most of those wrecks will be about 150 years old & will be considerably degraded!

[MikeN]

^ Prior to the opening of the Suez Canal most ships bound from Britain to Australia would pass through those waters, so there probably are hundreds of wrecks in that region. However, most of those wrecks will be about 150 years old & will be considerably degraded!

Plus all the ships heading for the "Dutch East Indies" that used the trade winds to head west after rounding South Africa before turning north towards modern day Indonesia. Many of them misjudged their location and when to turn north and were wrecked on the West Aus coast, such as the Batavia. No doubt many more were lost in storms mid ocean.

[MaxYakov]

Send in the Robert Ballard team to assist. He's been looking for BCE shipwrecks in deep water. If this keeps up much longer maybe MH 370 could be mistaken for one.

[Thongkorn]

If this planes had rolls Royce engines they would know exactly where the plane was, The Engine management systems record the wear and tear on the Engines so that any problems or defects can be spotted for maintenance, They send GPS signals, so i find this disappearance very intriguing, ps I a not a conspiracy theorist,

Edited May 16, 2015 by Thongkorn

[MaxYakov]

If this planes had rolls Royce engines they would know exactly where the plane was, The Engine management systems record the wear and tear on the Engines so that any problems or defects can be spotted for maintenance, They send GPS signals, so i find this disappearance very intriguing, ps I a not a conspiracy theorist,

The MH 370 plane had Rolls Royce engines.

And, of course, they still don't know "exactly" where the plane is.

It's not that simple. Please try to keep up by doing a little research (aka reading).

Here's what appears to be a pretty good New Scientist Article on MH 370 engine status reporting

[impulse]

A little more info on the concerns about the equipment and people Fugro is using...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/27/us-malaysia-airlines-crash-search-insigh-idUSKBN0OC2QE20150527