A merchant ship is steaming towards a spot in the southern Indian Ocean where two large objects that could be debris from the missing Malaysian Airlines plane have been spotted.
It emerged this afternoon that satellite imagery has picked up at least two large objects in the ocean, 2,500 kilometres southwest of Perth.
But while the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) says the objects are their best lead so far, they caution that they might prove to have nothing to do with flight MH370.
MH370 disappeared hours after leaving Kuala Lumpur for Beijing early on Saturday March 8 with 239 people on board.
AMSA is coordinating a search for the plane in the southern Indian Ocean.
John Young, emergency response division general manager at AMSA, says the objects, one believed to be about 24 metres across, will be difficult to locate.
An RAAF aircraft arrived at the area just before 2pm (AEDT) and three more military aircraft, including two from the United States and New Zealand, are expected to reach the area later on today.
An Australian Hercules will drop marker buoys in the area highlighted by the satellite imagery.
A merchant ship that responded to a shipping broadcast issued by Rescue Coordination Australia on Monday is expected to arrive in the area about 6pm (AEDT).
'We may get a sighting'
Mr Young said the marker buoys will provide an ongoing reference point if the task of relocating the objects becomes protracted.
In AMSA's experience there was usually debris floating in that area, but on this occasion the size, and the fact that there were a number, made it worth looking at, he said.
He also cautioned against any hasty expectations of an outcome of the search because of unfavourable weather conditions.
"We may get a sighting, we may not. We may get it tomorrow, we may not," he said.
"But we will continue to do this until we locate those objects or we are convinced that we cannot find them."
Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he has informed Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak of the developments.
But he also warned against drawing any premature conclusions or hopes on the search.
Malaysian Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein says the lead gives reason for hope, but stressed the need to verify the claim.
Key points in search for possible debris.
- At least two objects have been spotted from satellite imagery. The largest object is 24 metres long.
- A Royal Australian Airforce Orion aircraft is already in the area where the objects have been spotted.
- Three other aircraft, including the Royal Ne Zealand Airforce Orion, have been tasked to the area.
- A Royal Australian Navy Warship, equipped to recover any objects, is en route to the area but is some days away.
- Weather conditions are moderate where the search is taking place. Poor visibility has been reported which will hamper both air and satellite efforts.
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