Search for jetliner has been beneficial

WELLINGTON, New Zealand – The yearlong search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has turned up no sign of the plane, but that doesn’t mean it’s been unproductive.

The knowledge gained from the search so far is of little comfort to family and friends of the 239 people still missing from the plane, which vanished March 8, 2014, during a flight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing. While finding the plane remains the top priority for searchers and investigators, what they’re learning along the way may prove valuable long after the search ends.

Benefits of the work so far include:

New underwater maps

In the Indian Ocean west of Australia, where experts believe the plane crashed, scientists have been mapping the sea floor to aid in the search for wreckage.

Previous maps relied on satellite data, which gave only rough estimates of the ocean’s depth. Now, using sonar readings from ships, scientists have mapped an area the size of Nebraska and have discovered previously unknown trenches and underwater mountains that rival the height of any on Australia’s surface.

Searchers are getting even more detailed sonar readings using small underwater vehicles.

Scientists from around the world are eagerly anticipating the release of the three-dimensional maps and data once the search is completed.

Better tsunami prediction

Stuart Minchin, a divisional chief at Geoscience Australia, said that when the maps are released and further analyzed, they will give scientists a better understanding of areas that during earthquakes are susceptible to underwater landslides, which can create or exacerbate tsunamis.

He said the information will help scientists pinpoint areas along Australia’s west coast that are vulnerable to tsunamis and enable better warnings and predictions for coastal residents.

Better plane tracking

One thing the airline industry learned from Flight 370 is that more tracking is needed, even for planes expected to fly over land for their entire journeys.

The International Civil Aviation Organization, which is part of the United Nations, has proposed that airlines be required to get position updates from each of their planes every 15 minutes. That requirement is expected to be in place by November 2016.

A more stringent requirement would seek updates every minute if a fire is detected or the plane makes an unusual move, such as suddenly dropping or climbing in elevation. That would apply only to jets manufactured after 2020.

Australian Transport Minister Warren Truss said recently that his government’s airspace agency will work with Malaysia and Indonesia to test a new method, which would enable planes to be tracked every 15 minutes, rather than the previous rate of 30 to 40 minutes. However, even if such a system had been in place for Flight 370, it would not have made it possible to track the plane because transponder and other equipment were switched off.

Improved searches

Capt. Chris Budde, maritime operations director for the U.S. Navy 7th Fleet, said that when it helped out on a multinational search for another missing plane in December, things went more smoothly thanks to lessons from the hunt for Flight 370.

The latter search was for AirAsia Flight 8501, which plunged into the Java Sea near Indonesia, killing all 162 people aboard.

Budde said tasks like establishing common radio frequencies between nations and determining who to contact onshore for search assignments were completed more efficiently after Indonesia studied and learned from Malaysia’s experience.

“These events are tragic, but they do help build cooperation and regional stability as militaries work together,” he said.

A window into history

Robin Beaman, a marine geologist at Australia’s James Cook University, said the underwater maps will help show scientists how Earth’s crust stretched and pulled apart millions of years ago, a process that is continuing today and is slowly pushing Australia away from Antarctica.

Dave Gallo, the director of special projects at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, said less than 8 percent of the underwater world has been explored.

“It’s more daunting than looking on Mars because there’s no light,” he said. “So we’re in a completely unknown world in mountains that are the most rugged on earth. There’s no maps, so it’s all basic, pure exploration with a mission.”