An expedition will set out this month to examine what might be aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart's lost aircraft in the Pacific.

A research team from Purdue University in Indiana will leave on October 30 to explore a peculiar feature in the lagoon of Nikumaroro Island in the western Pacific - which they believe could be the wreckage of Ms Earhart's long-lost Lockheed Electra 10E.

The aviator and her navigator Fred Noonan disappeared on July 2, 1937 whilst attempting to circumnavigate the globe, with their aircraft vanishing close to Howland Island.

Nearly nine decades later, researchers believe they may be close to resolving one of aviation's most enduring enigmas.

Researchers believe the 'Taraia Object' could be the wreckage of Ms Earhart's long-lost Lockheed Electra 10E (pictured)

The mysterious feature, dubbed the Taraia Object, was initially identified in satellite photographs in 2020 and appears to resemble an aircraft's body and tail section.

Researchers have since verified that this anomaly appears in aerial photographs of the island's lagoon dating back to 1938 - merely twelve months after the disappearance.

Richard Pettigrew, who serves as executive director at the Archaeological Legacy Institute and is participating in the mission, said: "Finding Amelia Earhart's Electra aircraft would be the discovery of a lifetime."

He noted that an "extremely persuasive, multifaceted case" exists supporting the theory that the pioneering pair's final location was Nikumaroro Island.

The Taraia Object was initially identified in satellite photographs in 2020 and appears to resemble an aircraft's body and tail section

The three-week mission involves a 15-member team flying to Majuro in the Marshall Islands before embarking on a sea voyage of roughly 1,200 nautical miles to reach Nikumaroro on November 4.

There, researchers will employ video equipment and photography to document the site, before using magnetometers and sonar technology for "remote sensing".

Hydraulic dredging equipment will then be deployed for underwater excavation to uncover and identify the object, according to Purdue University.

The team also intends to survey adjacent land areas for any wreckage that might have been deposited by the waves.

The mission is expected to conclude around November 21 when the crew returns to Majuro, with flights home scheduled for the next day.

Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan disappeared on July 2, 1937 whilst attempting to circumnavigate the globe

Ms Earhart had been attempting to become the first female pilot to fly around the world when her aircraft disappeared 88 years ago.

The aviation pioneer had joined Purdue University in 1935, spending two years as a counsellor for women's careers and an adviser within the aeronautics department.

The university recently inaugurated the Amelia Earhart Terminal at its airport in honour of her contributions, which ended when she died aged 39.

Steve Schultz, Purdue University's senior vice president and general counsel, said: "We feel we owe it to her legacy, which remains so strong at Purdue, to try to find a way to bring it home."