Scottish technology company Clarus Networks Group partnered with South Carolina-based marine robotics experts Deep Sea Vision in providing high-speed satellite internet connectivity for their search vessel, aiding in new sonar imagery to potentially reveal Earhart’s lost plane.

Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan vanished over the central Pacific Ocean during an attempt to complete a circumnavigational flight of the globe in 1937. Now, after a 90-day mission at sea, Deep Sea Vision has unveiled sonar images believed to depict Earhart’s Lockheed Electra aircraft resting on the ocean floor.

Using the autonomous underwater drone, HUGIN 6000, affectionately named ‘Miss Millie,’ Deep Sea Vision combed over 5,200 square miles of the Pacific Ocean. Miss Millie’s capabilities include reaching depths of 6 kilometres and conducting search dives lasting approximately 36 hours, autonomously navigating the ocean depths while collecting terabytes of sonar data.

Clarus Networks Group facilitated the mission by deploying low Earth orbit satellite technology, Starlink Maritime, ensuring uninterrupted high-speed internet for the search vessel. This allowed Deep Sea Vision’s 16-person crew to manage data from Miss Millie, conduct video calls with shore teams, and maintain morale during the extended mission.

“The enormity of Deep Sea Vision’s mission demonstrates the sheer power of advanced satellite connectivity, allowing the team to search the largest and deepest ocean as a world first. By installing low Earth orbit satellite internet on the search vessel, Clarus used Starlink Maritime to deliver super fast connectivity to the middle of the Pacific Ocean, halfway between Hawaii and Australia, where it would have otherwise been impossible,” said Chris Schonhut, director of maritime & energy at Clarus Networks Group.

The satellite connectivity was able to deliver download speeds of up to 220 mbps at sea, and upload speeds of 25 mbps with less than 99ms of latency. The Starlink Maritime also used specialised antennas designed to withstand extreme temperature and weather.

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“Our search mission took us to one of the most remote Oceans in the world, but working with Clarus we were able to maintain superfast connectivity. This was critical to our mission, allowing us to handle the massive amounts of data sent by our marine robotics and to Facetime with my 6 year old daughter back home who also had plenty of exciting things to show me,” said Tony Romeo, CEO of Deep Sea Vision.

According to Romeo, the discovery only came at the tail end of the expedition, so fast connectivity had a positive impact on the crew, allowing them to communicate with support teams back on the shore. 

Sonar image side by side with Earhart’s Electra at scale (Photo credit: Deep Sea Vision)

Deep Sea Vision remains tight-lipped about the exact location of the discovery, emphasising confidentiality as they move closer to unravelling Earhart’s disappearance.

The revelation marks a significant milestone in aviation history and also underscores the power of collaboration between technology firms.