By Tim Binnall
Purdue University has announced plans to support a new search for Amelia Earhart's lost plane this coming November. Detailed in a press release issued on Wednesday to mark the 88th anniversary of the pioneering pilot's disappearance, the forthcoming expedition will be a joint effort from the Purdue Research Foundation and the Archaeological Legacy Institute. The focus of the search will be a curious anomaly dubbed the Taraia Object. First spotted in satellite images several years ago, the weird formation resembling a small aircraft is located in a lagoon on the Pacific Island of Nikumaroro, where it has long been believed Earhart's aircraft ultimately came to rest.
Archaeological Legacy Institute's executive director Dr. Richard Pettigrew, who has long championed the Taraia Object as a possible answer to the mystery of Earhart's disappearance, marveled that the expedition is "maybe the greatest opportunity ever to finally close the case." As for why Purdue is participating in the search, the decision was inspired by the university's deep ties to the pioneering pilot and her ill-fated attempt at circumnavigating the globe. To that end, not only did Earhart work for the college in various capacities leading up to the infamous flight, but the aircraft itself was funded by the same Purdue Research Foundation that is backing November's expedition.
The foundation's contribution to her mission was so significant and appreciated by Earhart that she had planned to donate the history-making plane to Purdue upon completing her journey. As such, university official Steven Schultz mused that the forthcoming expedition serves as an opportunity to not only solve the mystery of the pilot's disappearance but to "fulfill Amelia’s wishes and bring the Electra home.” Set to commence on November 5th, researchers will spend five days examining the Taraia Object to determine if it is, indeed, Earhart's plane or if the aircraft shape is merely another maddening trick of light and shadow.