TIGHAR
5 hours ago
BREAKING NEWS
ANNOUNCING
The Plan for Niku VIII
What will it take to find whatever remains of the Earhart Electra? After more than a year of data analysis and operations review we believe we have the answer.
This is what Niku VIII will look like:
Dates: Thirty day expedition, mid-August to mid-September 2014. Exact dates to be determined.
Vessel: University of Hawaii oceanographic research ship Ka’Imikai-O-Kanaloa (aka KOK), the same ship we used for the 2012 Niku VII expedition.
Search Technology: Hawaiian Undersea Research Laboratory (HURL) Pisces IV and Pisces V manned submersibles, each carrying a pilot and two TIGHAR observers. Each sub is also equipped with High Definition video and still cameras, Standard Definition video with time, depth, heading, and altitude off the bottom data displayed, mechanical arms and recovery baskets.
Search Operations: A detailed “eyeball” and photographic examination of the entire mile-long underwater search area down to a depth of 1,000 meters, possibly deeper. “Live” searching by three people aboard each sub looking at wide vistas illuminated by powerful lights is far superior to searching by looking remotely via the toilet-paper tube view provided by a video camera on an ROV. With both subs in the water every day, the entire search area can be systematically covered in 7 to 10 days.
The plan for Niku VIII is built on the hard data gathered and the hard lessons learned during Niku VI and Niku VII. In the days and weeks to come we’ll be putting out detailed information and answering questions about all aspects of the search in TIGHARNews and on the TIGHAR website and Facebook page. As always, our ability to do this work depends entirely upon your contributions, large and small.
There is also more on the subs on Tighar's Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/pages/TIGHAR/224536440657