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| More objects spotted by satellite, but still no confirmed connection to missing plane | More objects spotted by satellite, but still no confirmed connection to missing plane |
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| KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A Thai satellite has spotted at least 300 floating objects in the southern Indian Ocean, where authorities say the flight of the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet ended almost three weeks ago, a Thai official said Thursday. | KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A Thai satellite has spotted at least 300 floating objects in the southern Indian Ocean, where authorities say the flight of the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet ended almost three weeks ago, a Thai official said Thursday. |
| The images were taken Monday by the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, a Thai space research agency, and show objects more than 1,600 miles south of Perth, Australia, said Anond Snidvongs, executive director of the agency. | The images were taken Monday by the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, a Thai space research agency, and show objects more than 1,600 miles south of Perth, Australia, said Anond Snidvongs, executive director of the agency. |
| They are the latest images from a series of satellites that have indicated the presence of debris in the area of the Indian Ocean where the passenger jet is believed to have gone down March 8, far from its intended flight path from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. There were 239 people on board. | They are the latest images from a series of satellites that have indicated the presence of debris in the area of the Indian Ocean where the passenger jet is believed to have gone down March 8, far from its intended flight path from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. There were 239 people on board. |
| “I wouldn’t say the debris is from the Malaysia Airlines flight,” he said over the phone from Bangkok, adding that they couldn’t be certain. “We just spotted a lot of floating objects.” | “I wouldn’t say the debris is from the Malaysia Airlines flight,” he said over the phone from Bangkok, adding that they couldn’t be certain. “We just spotted a lot of floating objects.” |
| He said the items picked up were as small as 6.5 feet and as long as 52.5 feet. They were seen about 124 miles from where French satellites detected a group of more than 100 objects earlier in the week. | He said the items picked up were as small as 6.5 feet and as long as 52.5 feet. They were seen about 124 miles from where French satellites detected a group of more than 100 objects earlier in the week. |
| The Australian-led effort to physically locate debris from the aircraft, however, was hampered Thursday as planes set out in the morning, only to turn back a few hours later. Five ships also continued scouring the section of the southern Indian Ocean where authorities think the flight ended. | The Australian-led effort to physically locate debris from the aircraft, however, was hampered Thursday as planes set out in the morning, only to turn back a few hours later. Five ships also continued scouring the section of the southern Indian Ocean where authorities think the flight ended. |
| Although still inconclusive, experts said the satellite images should allow air and sea-based crews to refine their search and eventually locate remnants of the missing plane or its cargo. | Although still inconclusive, experts said the satellite images should allow air and sea-based crews to refine their search and eventually locate remnants of the missing plane or its cargo. |
| “The floating debris combined with the satellite data are a powerful combination,” said Dave Gallo, who searched the ocean bottom for the black box of an Air France flight that went down in 2009. “That gives them the center of the haystack. Track record shows that an aircraft will be very close to that last known position.” | “The floating debris combined with the satellite data are a powerful combination,” said Dave Gallo, who searched the ocean bottom for the black box of an Air France flight that went down in 2009. “That gives them the center of the haystack. Track record shows that an aircraft will be very close to that last known position.” |
| Aircraft and ships from six countries — Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Japan, China and South Korea — have been trying to cover a nearly 50,000-square-mile search area, a region so far from their landing base in Perth that planes only have enough fuel to search for two to four hours before turning back. | Aircraft and ships from six countries — Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Japan, China and South Korea — have been trying to cover a nearly 50,000-square-mile search area, a region so far from their landing base in Perth that planes only have enough fuel to search for two to four hours before turning back. |
| Between bad weather and the unpredictable interplay of wind and ocean currents, observers have run into a series of dead ends. | Between bad weather and the unpredictable interplay of wind and ocean currents, observers have run into a series of dead ends. |
| Wednesday’s search area, for example, included the location where the French satellites picked up signs of 122 objects. Observers saw three items in the area late in the day — two that were likely rope, plus a blue object. When planes flew overhead again to take a look, they could not spot them. | Wednesday’s search area, for example, included the location where the French satellites picked up signs of 122 objects. Observers saw three items in the area late in the day — two that were likely rope, plus a blue object. When planes flew overhead again to take a look, they could not spot them. |
| Even finding debris that comes from the missing flight is just a first step in unraveling the mystery of what happened to it, Gallo said. | Even finding debris that comes from the missing flight is just a first step in unraveling the mystery of what happened to it, Gallo said. |
| The black box containing cockpit audio and flight data must still be found, and at this point any plane debris may have drifted 10 to 100 miles from the spot of the possible crash site. | The black box containing cockpit audio and flight data must still be found, and at this point any plane debris may have drifted 10 to 100 miles from the spot of the possible crash site. |
| “It depends on the speed and direction of the winds and the currents. Sometimes they operate against each other, sometimes with each other and sometimes at angles to each other,” said Gallo, who in addition to leading the team from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution that found the Air France black box in the Atlantic, took part in mapping the ocean floor near the current search area. “It’s a complicated set of issues.” | “It depends on the speed and direction of the winds and the currents. Sometimes they operate against each other, sometimes with each other and sometimes at angles to each other,” said Gallo, who in addition to leading the team from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution that found the Air France black box in the Atlantic, took part in mapping the ocean floor near the current search area. “It’s a complicated set of issues.” |
| The underwater terrain there is known as the Southeast Indian Ridge, a portion of a mountain chain known as the Mid-Ocean Ridge. | The underwater terrain there is known as the Southeast Indian Ridge, a portion of a mountain chain known as the Mid-Ocean Ridge. |
| “It’s a 50,000-mile-long mountain range that wraps around the earth like the seams of a baseball,” Gallo said in reference to the Mid-Ocean Ridge. | |
| He said the ocean bottom was rolling mountains, more like the Appalachians than the Rockies, with depths from 1.5 to 2.5 miles. | He said the ocean bottom was rolling mountains, more like the Appalachians than the Rockies, with depths from 1.5 to 2.5 miles. |
| “The bigger obstacle [to the search] is the sea water above it,” he said, recalling days when their research vessel plowed along at no more than 1 mph. “You expect to have horrible days more than anything else, just because the winds there are typically howling and the currents are always very strong.” | “The bigger obstacle [to the search] is the sea water above it,” he said, recalling days when their research vessel plowed along at no more than 1 mph. “You expect to have horrible days more than anything else, just because the winds there are typically howling and the currents are always very strong.” |
| The search could be running short on time. | The search could be running short on time. |
| “That stuff eventually is going to sink. It’s not going to float forever,” said Ron Carr, a pilot for 39 years before becoming a professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona. | “That stuff eventually is going to sink. It’s not going to float forever,” said Ron Carr, a pilot for 39 years before becoming a professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Arizona. |
| The U.S. Navy dispatched more equipment to Australia this week. If plane debris is found and drift calculations sharply narrow the search area to a few dozen miles, the additional equipment can be put to use. | The U.S. Navy dispatched more equipment to Australia this week. If plane debris is found and drift calculations sharply narrow the search area to a few dozen miles, the additional equipment can be put to use. |
| The additional equipment included a device that can be towed underwater from a boat to listen for a “ping” from the plane’s black box and an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) akin to an unmanned submarine. | The additional equipment included a device that can be towed underwater from a boat to listen for a “ping” from the plane’s black box and an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) akin to an unmanned submarine. |
| The towed ping locator (TPL) is towed on a sled on a long tether that limits the towboat’s speed to less than three knots. The AUV — a Bluefin 21 — can move slightly faster. Three AUVs were used to search a 40-square-mile area of the Atlantic where the Air France airliner went down in 2009. That search took several months. | The towed ping locator (TPL) is towed on a sled on a long tether that limits the towboat’s speed to less than three knots. The AUV — a Bluefin 21 — can move slightly faster. Three AUVs were used to search a 40-square-mile area of the Atlantic where the Air France airliner went down in 2009. That search took several months. |
| “Those TPLs on paper are fantastic,” Gallo said. “In practice, if the conditions are right and you have skilled operators, they can be powerful. The ocean can do a lot of things with sound. For instance, if you know how to use thermal layers in the ocean, you can hide a nuclear submarine from some of the most powerful sonar.” | “Those TPLs on paper are fantastic,” Gallo said. “In practice, if the conditions are right and you have skilled operators, they can be powerful. The ocean can do a lot of things with sound. For instance, if you know how to use thermal layers in the ocean, you can hide a nuclear submarine from some of the most powerful sonar.” |
| In the Air France search, he said, a ping locator was towed right over the wreck site but didn’t pick up its signal. | In the Air France search, he said, a ping locator was towed right over the wreck site but didn’t pick up its signal. |
| While sonar can pick up the signal of metal objects on the ocean floor, the ping sent out by the emergency beacon attached to the black box will fall silent in a matter of days. The battery that powers it has a life of 30 days, so it is expected to die by April 7. Its signal carries for no more than three miles. | While sonar can pick up the signal of metal objects on the ocean floor, the ping sent out by the emergency beacon attached to the black box will fall silent in a matter of days. The battery that powers it has a life of 30 days, so it is expected to die by April 7. Its signal carries for no more than three miles. |
| Halsey reported from Washington. Gu Jinglu in Beijing contributed to this report. | Halsey reported from Washington. Gu Jinglu in Beijing contributed to this report. |