Amelia Earhart DNA Tests on Bone Fragments Inconclusive

March 7, 2011 — On June 1, 1937, Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan took off on their 29,000-mile trip around the world. On July 2, with only 7,000 miles left to go, they disappeared while en route to Howland Island in the mid-Pacific. The most extensive air and sea search in naval history thus far took place immediately. But on July 19, after spending $4 million and scouring 250,000 square miles of ocean, the United States government reluctantly called off the operation. More than 70 years later, there is still no proof of her fate. Researchers announced last week that tests on bone fragments, which they had hoped would lead to a definite answer what happened, did not turn up the evidence they had hoped for. After testing the fragments found on a South Pacific island, along with other artifacts, scientists at the University of Oklahoma said they could not be certain they were from Earhart. The fragments, along with makeup and old bottles, were found on Nikumaroro Island nearly 2,000 miles south of Hawaii. Cecil M. Lewis Jr. of the University of Oklahoma's Molecular Anthropology Laboratories reported "the question of whether the bone is human must remain unanswered" until new technologies may make a determination possible, CNN reported. "We knew this would be a tough job to get DNA from stuff that had laid around for 70 years," Ric Gillespie told USA Today. Gillespie, director of the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery or TIGHAR, which found the pieces of bone, said: "The woman's been missing for 74 years. We've been looking for her for 23 years. We have learned patience." However, TIGHAR reported that the lab’s analysis of clumps of a substance recovered from the same archaeological site that may be human fecal matter has been more rewarding. The University of Oklahoma Molecular Anthropology Laboratories was successful in detecting human mitochondrial DNA in the material. Unlike the bone fragment, the presence of human DNA in the clumps is unambiguous. DNA from two individuals was detected but, to date, the amount extracted is not sufficient for comparison to reference samples. More sophisticated testing is now under way in the hope of learning more. In addition, TIGHAR is planning a major underwater search for July 2012, the 75th anniversary of the flight.

Nearly 75 years after Amelia Earhart disappeared as she was flying around the world in her Electra, her fate is still unknown. DNA testing on fecal matter may prove some clues as to what happened to Amelia Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan.

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