Researchers hunting for Amelia Earhart‘s lost plane believe they have identified a piece of the aircraft for the very first time since her disappearance.
An aluminum fragment discovered on the uninhabited Pacific atoll Nikumaroro in 1991, near where Earhart disappeared on in 1937, has been identified “with a high degree of certainty” as part of Earhart’s Lockheed Electra.
Earhart took off from Miami on June 1, 1937, officially kicking off her second attempt to circumnavigate the world. On July 2, 1937, she took off from Lae, New Guinea, with just 7,000 miles to go, and disappeared.
According to researchers at The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, which is dedicated to locating Earhart’s plane, the fragment is very likely a patch installed as quick fix to replace a custom-made window on her plane.
Nikumaroro has long been suspected as the final resting place of Earhart after a 1937 was discovered to have possibly captured a glimpse of her Electra’s landing gear.
[via Discovery News]