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A trip planned by researchers who are looking for answers about the disappearance of American aviator Amelia Earhart has been delayed.
The Purdue Research Foundation, based in Indiana, and the Archaeological Legacy Institute, in Oregon, announced they’ve halted their “Taraia Object Expedition” search project for the time being.
Researchers had been planning to depart on November 4 from Majuro, in the Marshall Islands, for the remote island of Nikumaroro — located roughly halfway between Australia and Hawaii.
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But a press release noted the project has been postponed to 2026, given the onset of the South Pacific cyclone season.
“The decision comes as the team awaits additional clearance from the Kiribati government and as seasonal weather challenges kick in over the Pacific Ocean during winter months,” reads the release.
Aviation trailblazer Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo and nonstop across the U.S. on Aug. 24, 1932. (AP)
When they do reach the island, researchers want to determine whether the “Taraia Object,” a visual anomaly captured by a satellite, is actually the remains of Earhart’s plane.
Earhart is widely known as an aviation trailblazer, becoming the first woman to fly solo and nonstop across the U.S. on Aug. 24, 1932.
She once worked at Purdue University in Indiana, serving as a career counselor for women and advising the aeronautical engineering department while living in the women’s residence hall.
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Earhart flew The Electra, which disappeared on July 2, 1937, while traveling from New Guinea to Howland Island.
Researchers hypothesize that Earhart did not crash at sea, but instead landed and was stranded on Nikumaroro Island, later perishing there.
The Taraia Object Expedition to Nikumaroro Island will investigate a satellite anomaly that researchers believe could be Amelia Earhart’s missing plane. (Purdue Research Foundation)
President Donald Trump previously announced that he had ordered his administration to declassify and release all government records related to Amelia Earhart.
Steven Schultz, chief legal officer of the Purdue Research Foundation, spoke about Trump’s order at a press conference last month.
“One of the aspects of that message was he ordered the release of any classified material related to Amelia and her final flight,” he said. “To our knowledge, there are no records — there are no such records that remain to be unclassified.”
The Purdue Research Foundation and Archaeological Legacy Institute recently announced the “Taraia Object Expedition” project. (Purdue Research Foundation)
Dorothy Cochrane, the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum’s Earhart expert, previously told Fox News Digital that “there’s no real mystery” surrounding The Electra’s disappearance.
“Amelia and [navigator] Fred [Noonan] were on the right path. They had the course to get to nearby Howland Island. … It was such a small island in the middle of nowhere, and there were radio communications issues; they could not find it before they ran out of fuel,” she noted.
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Many theories have circulated about the disappearance, such as Earhart living as a castaway on the island of Nikumaroro, being captured by the Japanese or serving as a “U.S. spy” and observing Japanese activity in the Pacific.
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Cochrane said she doesn’t buy into these theories.
“There are facts to be followed from the Coast Guard folks who were awaiting them at Howland, so it’s pertinent to search in and around Howland,” she said.