Barnacles clue to MH370 plane mystery

Barnacles encrusted on plane debris that washed up on the French island of Reunion might unravel the mystery of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which disappeared last year with 239 passengers and crew.

Malaysia said the piece of debris, a 2-2.5 metre (6.5-8 feet) wing surface known as a flaperon, was from a Boeing 777, the same model as the missing Malaysian plane. Investigators in France are expected to have determined by tomorrow whether the piece came from MH370 or not.

MH370 is believed to have crashed in the southern Indian Ocean, 3,700km (2,300 miles) from Reunion. Based on photographs, ecologists in Australia believe the crustaceans clinging to the wing piece are goose or stalkbarnacles. “Barnacle shells ... can tell us valuable information about the water conditions under which they were formed,” said Ryan Pearson, a PhD student at Australia’s Griffith University, who is studying the shell chemistry of barnacles to determine migration patterns of endangered loggerhead turtles. The technique is also used to study the movement of whales.

Experts analyse barnacle shells to determine the temperature and chemical composition of the water through which they passed.

The technique may narrow the area of the search to within tens, or hundreds, of kilometres, but is unlikely to pinpoint the plane’s exact location, Pearson said.

Barnacles can be aged, based on growth rates and size. If the barnacles on the debris are older than the date MH370 went missing, then it is from a different plane, said Melanie Bishop, a professor at the Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University.

Ecologists will look at whether the barnacles are on the surface of the flaperon or on the sides, as that could indicate whether the debris moved on the surface of the water or was submerged.

The investigators in France would also be on the lookout for other organisms, such as tube worms, coralline red algae or shellfish, which could also provide clues.

Marine archaeologists study barnacles for clues about shipwrecks, but this is the first time they will be studied to determine the fate of an airliner. “It’s a nice example of the unexpected ways that discovery research can be surprisingly useful in tackling new problems in different contexts,” said professor Angela Moles, evolution and ecology research centre at the University of New South Wales.

In one of the most baffling mysteries in aviation history, MH370inexplicably veered off course last March and disappeared from radars, sparking a colossal hunt that has until now proved fruitless. In January, Malaysian authorities declared all 239 people on board MH370 presumed dead.