Essay Sample about The Disappearance of Amelia Earhart

The disappearance of Amelia Earhart is a long-standing mystery that has sparked worldwide conjecture about what happened to the famous flyer in July 1937. In their Lockheed Electra, Amelia Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, attempted to fly around the world.  Their final refueling stop, as they neared the end of their journey, was Howland Island, a small island in the Pacific Ocean. They lost contact with the boat that was intended to guide them to Howland on their journey there, and they were never recovered. Because of the physical evidence, the geographical location of the island in connection to her flight route, and the fact that she ran out of fuel and it was an excellent emergency landing area, it is thought that Amelia Earhart landed on Gardner Island and survived as a castaway.

The physical evidence on Gardner Island focuses on the presence of Amelia and Noonan being there. Multiple pieces of physical evidence were discovered during trips to Gardner Island over the years. Amelia's bones, freckle cream, and plexiglass from the plane were among the items discovered. The bones were inspected by a doctor who said they were male bones, but "after further analysis they were found to be female and the right size," according to the source "What Happened to Amelia Earhart?" (LifesBiggestQuestions 3:04). Amelia often used freckle cream similar to the one found on Gardner Island. The plexiglass is almost identical to a piece of plane glass. The bones could have been Amelia's because they were the right size and female, and if they hadn't been lost, they could have proven that she was there. The freckle cream strongly points to Amelia because she was known to use it and it is something unique to her. The plexiglass piece was nearly identical in size and properties to a piece on the side of a Lockheed Electra, indicating that it was most likely from her plane rather than another. The physical evidence is a strong link to Amelia because the items are all unique to her or her plane, indicating that they were most likely hers.

Due to Amelia's geographical location, it was plausible that they could have made it to Gardner Island. Amelia Earhart intended to fly to Howland Island, but she got off track with her flying route. Amelia could have easily gotten to Gardner Island, which is only 400 miles away from Howland. Amelia's flight pattern went very close to Gardner Island, according to the map of her final flight. She would fly by Gardner Island if she went slightly in the wrong direction due to the storm. Because Amelia's flight path took her just off Gardner Island and to Howland, the storm or bad weather may have caused her to turn in the wrong direction, causing her to head over to Gardner Island. In the source, “The Disappearance of Amelia Earhart”, it states, “…to only occasionally intercept the increasingly grim messages from Earhart that she and Noonan, unable to locate the island, were running low on fuel” (2). This shows that they were desperate, and it makes sense that they would land there as a last ditch effort. 

Amelia was running low on fuel while searching for Howland Island, so she may have needed an emergency landing spot to avoid running out of fuel and crashing into the ocean, and Gardner Island was an ideal choice. The weather was foggy and stormy during her flight to Howland Island, making navigation difficult. Amelia spent so much time looking for Howland as a result of this that she ran out of gas. According to Earhart's radio communications, she stated that "we must be on you but cannot see you," implying that she was looking for the island but was unable to locate it due to the fog. Some believe Amelia crashed into the ocean because she could not find a suitable landing spot, but she was a skilled pilot, and Noonan was a skilled navigator, and they had enough fuel in reserve to reach Gardner Island. In addition, after many sonar scans of the ocean, not a single one has turned back wreckage of the plane in the water. Because it was stormy and foggy, making navigation difficult, and the plane was running low on fuel, Amelia looked for an emergency landing spot, and Gardner Island, a small island near Howland, would have been suitable.  

The strong physical evidence on Gardner Island, its geographic location, and the weather and fuel conditions show that Amelia was able to reach the island and survive as a castaway there for an unknown period of time. The physical evidence on Gardner Island is linked to Amelia because it was either hers or was on the plane with her. Gardner Island is close to Howland Island, making it relatively easy to reach based on Amelia's flight path. Because the weather at the time made navigation difficult, and Amelia was running low on fuel, she most likely attempted a crash landing on Gardner Island. Since modern day sonar detection and multiple investigations have turned up nothing, will we ever truly know what happened to Amelia Earhart?