Search For Steve Fossett Expands To Amazon’s Mechanical Turk

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1. Steve Spalding
   

   September 8th, 2007 at 11:33 pm

   At least Web X.0 is being used for something valuable now. I wonder if any of the aggregaters can get a hold of more current satellite imagery. I have heard that the Google Earth algorithm doesn’t necessarily used the most -recent- images, it just uses the “best” ones, based on a lot of Mountain View black magic.

   Either way, I wish them all the best in the search. This is the real point of all this crap isn’t it? Actually improving the lot of humanity, or at least giving it the old college try.

2. Avinash
   

   September 8th, 2007 at 11:41 pm

   Good use of Technology for a good cause. I wish them all the best in the search as well.

3. Sami
   

   September 8th, 2007 at 11:50 pm

   Isn’t that so weird that half a dozen crashes went unfound until now. Amazing what they can do when they put their time into it. I hope they find him!

4. ImageBlox : Free Image Hosting
   

   September 9th, 2007 at 12:01 am

   Well everybody should try to do whatever they can. It does not matter which way.

   If using Amazon Turk can help …so be it.

   http://www.imageblox.com

5. Word Hugger
   

   September 9th, 2007 at 12:23 am

   Now that is some REAL front page technology news for a change

6. Andrew
   

   September 9th, 2007 at 12:29 am

   I assume this same type of search(at least tax payer funded)…would be used in the event of a regular joe’s plane disappearing? Probably not

7. Steve Spalding
   

   September 9th, 2007 at 1:12 am

   Usually I would agree with you on something like that #6, but in this case I think the nice thing is that free, powerful technology like this is available to anyone with a computer and an internet connection. It’s putting control back in the hands of citizens.

   Whether this would have received the coverage it has is quite another story…Regardless, back on the support train — good luck to all involved.

8. Jedi Wright
   

   September 9th, 2007 at 1:27 am

   Yes it is amazing what great benefit technology can be put towards when it suits those with the control to make it so. And yes, the best of luck in this, yet another massively coordinated search effort.

   But that all being said, if Mr. Fossett turns up missing for good as has Mr. Gray, it will seem…well, a bit odd. Both men are highly successful and no doubt influential in their respective fields, obviously. So while it may seem a bit out of left field and perhaps far-fetched, I can’t but help be struck with the thought that perhaps there’s some sort of cover-up/foul play/etc. involved here (just think WWII -> missing scientists).

   Regardless, my best wishes in success to all involved!

9. Jesse
   

   September 9th, 2007 at 1:50 am

   I hope Fossett is safe, but adventurers like him need to think about the consequences that come with putting their lives at risk and take responsibility for their own life. It’s not fair to the people that care about them or rescuers who spend time and risk their own lives to find them.

   All this story does is sensationalize wealthy, well-connected “adventurers” who get themselves into bad situations because they are overconfident and underprepared.

10. Mo Kakwan
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 1:52 am

    I scanned images for Jim Gray, and now I find myself scanning images in google earth for Steve Fossett. The shadows of the trees and the elevation changes make it seem like this is an even more difficult search then the one at sea for Jim Gray.

11. Talk Technology
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:13 am

    Technology usage at its best.
    I believe that this case would give out positive results… not like Gray. My prayers for him..

12. Film Asia
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 4:02 am

    Hopefully the search effort would be successful

13. Michael Vu
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 5:05 am

    Wow. Good luck on the search, and kudos to Amazon for the Mechanical Turk. It’s an incredible technology…If they find him, it would be a remarkable thing in so many ways….

14. Novice SEO
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 5:44 am

    I echo the comments above about using todays technology for this search. As a former Navy satellite sensor interpreter (circa mid 80’s) it is great to see this kind of tech being used in a group effort. Imaging satellites are very clear and to see them used for something positive is good. I am sure todays satellites are even more powerful than the amazing shots I used to view almost 30 years ago.

15. wicked cool tour maps
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 6:51 am

    Why cant the CIA use this thing to find OBL? It would be like a national game of Where’s Waldo…

16. Liron
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 7:06 am

    This seems to have good intentions, but it feels like it’s making me jump through hoops in order to contribute. I followed your link and on the project’s main page, I found a photo which seemed like something about it was a little odd. I wanted to submit it for a second look, but in order to do so, I had to visit a few web-forms and fill out my personal information. After jumping through these hoops, the photo I was originally looking and and wanted to submit was no longer there - the page had refreshed and I had been presented with a new photo to look over.

17. wicked cool tour maps
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 7:49 am

    Liron that probably just means that another person in the mob processed the photo while you were officially registering. Once you sign up and log in you should be able to process lots of HITs with no interruption, at least that was my experience in looking for Jim Gray.

18. Rakesh
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 8:15 am

    just check out this website you will get free Rapidshare Premium Accounts for 6 months -http://topmostreviews.wordpress.com

19. Animal
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 8:29 am

    I rememeber my friend watch classic movie called “ALIVE”. It’s about starving plane-crash passagers eat humans. They ate humans and tear meat strings like Tiger. They were roaring like Klingons.

20. Derrick
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 8:51 am

    I just completed a few HITs, hope others can do the same!

21. Marie-Lynn Richard
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 9:57 am

    I have written about Mechanical Turk when it first came out 2-3 years ago. I think it is a landmark platform and we are only now seeing how it can be used. I cannot be bothered to perform Hits for 25 cents, too boring. This I will gladly do for free. There are over 12,000 pictures to look at. 5-10 people are asked to look at the same picture for accuracy. Lots of people need to chip in.

22. Caleb
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 11:49 am

    Mech Turk is one way… Presumably they are asking users to search satellite photos taken within the last few days. They should try aligning photos taken before and after the crash, and then subtracting the images (after adjusting for clouds, lighting conditions, etc.) looking for differences. I think the folks at NASA used something similar to detect the dust devils on mars with the cameras on Spirit.

23. jack
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 12:10 pm

    I wonder if the six other crashes they found were as ‘important’ as this crash.

24. Dave
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 12:14 pm

    @Jedi Wright

    Ever read Atlas Shrugged? People disappearing on planes? Certainly makes you think…. =)

25. Dennis Eldridge
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 12:30 pm

    This is a great project, and I intend on adding my efforts to the cause. I also wonder if one could automate the photo analysis process since the parameters of what to look for in the photos is known. For instance a photo of interest would have mostly non-linear objects with dirty, scrubby colours and the plane would be a very stark white.

    Wish I was a programmer; I’d love to work on this sort of thing. But for now, I’ll get to work with that mushy, gray computer in my head.

    Cheers

26. Lee
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 1:33 pm

    Just spent a while looking around one of the search areas. A plane is clearly visible here:
    38°28′55.74″N
    119°24′18.16″W
    What does a crashed plane look like? Is it likely to be like this or is this in one in the air?

27. Jeremy Moy
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 1:48 pm

    This is not fair. Why are Google and Amazon helping with this search, just because Steve Fossett is rich? If I get lost in the desert, I don’t think Google or Amazon will give a shit. I make about $100,000 per year, so I am not rich.

    Seriously, screw this. Steve Fossett took extra risk on himself, he is an adventurer. If I have an accident in the desert nobody will care.

28. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 1:56 pm

    @jesse

    Flying a Super Decathlon around is hardly what I’d call high risk activity. It’s a small plane that travels at a top speed of less than 130 kts. I don’t think this is something unreasonbale that he should have avoided for fear of the effort people have put in to find him. Besides, no one has been forced to look for him.

    See http://www.amerchampionaircraf.....dspecs.htm

    @jack

    Perhaps the attention generated from this will make it easier in the future for people to conduct searches for ‘average’ people?

29. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:00 pm

    @jeremy

    Umm, maybe because he is well known, especially in tech circles, and has lots of friends who want to and can help?

    As I said to jesse, I don’t think this was something unreasonable that he was doing. Should paramedics not respond to someone who was hit by a car while riding a bike?

30. Lee
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:02 pm

    I don’t think your income is the reason that people wouldn’t bother looking for you!

31. xxdesmus
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:09 pm

    This is a great use of technology.

32. Deniz
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:29 pm

    @ Lee: Indeed there is an airplane right there, it is really interesting — it seems like a hard spot to land, but it is definitely an airplane… who do we report this to?

33. Steve Ballmer
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:35 pm

    I am also encouraging the search for him. He’s a nice guy, do what you can.

    http://fakesteveballmer.blogsp.....es_05.html

34. Chris Granger
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:36 pm

    The first time I attempted to flag an image Yes and enter some clarifying details, I received an error.

    The image, with the original on the left and a contrast-enhanced circle around what I was flagging on the right:

    http://i3.photobucket.com/albu.....2231_4.jpg

    The file name of the original image is 0302122231_4.jpg if that is of any significance.

    The likelihood is that it’s my eyes playing tricks, but I really didn’t want to ignore this error, just in case…

35. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:36 pm

    What ever happened to the black box or a GPS locater? Shouldn’t his plane have had some sort of beacon? AFAIK the FAA requires such a thing, and given his flight path he should have dropped off the radar and that should be recorded as where and when. I just don’t see why it’s so hard to find his plane - not at all.

36. Jeff
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:37 pm

    have the images been adjusted to be so dark on purpose and hopefuly contrast to the plane? Or is it just my computer?

37. Lee
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:40 pm

    Deniz,
    I don’t know who to report it to. I flagged it, but they must get hundreds of those. Do you think it’s on the ground? I can’t tell if it’s a shadow around it, indicating it’s in the air, or whether there is a clearing where it could have crashed.

38. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:44 pm

    @dustin

    GA aircraft don’t require a black box, like an airliner. However, almost all require an ELT (emergency locater transmitter). The ELT is designed to start transmitting an emergency signal in the event of a impact. However, it’s possible that the ELT didn’t work for some reason, or that there was no impact.

    The ELT has a switch which allows manual activation, should the pilot choose to turn it on. Also, FAA annual inspection requirements for aircraft generally require the battery on an ELT to be replaced, at worst, every two years.

39. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:48 pm

    I guess the biggest thing here is Steve Fosset being missing period, could have very, very, very easily have been prevented. He could have a satellite phone, a beacon on his plane, a gps unit, etc. All things that I would have done at the very least. I don’t get why he is missing period, still. Can someone fill me in please? How does a plane go missing with a flight plan? Was he flying some stealth sesna smuggling drugs or something? No.

40. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:52 pm

    @dustin

    Also, radar coverage is not 100% in the country. Additionally, it is typically passive radar, not active (like military). That is, ATC’s ‘radar’ sends out a signal. A transponder in the plane responds to the ATC signal, and the round trip time (plus the angular position of the radar transmitter) is used to determine the position of the plane.

    Transponders are not always required in planes, though I suspect the Decathlon has one. Even if they are, you don’t have to have it on unless you are in certain airspace. And, as I mentioned before, it might not matter if you are out of radar converage area. This is pretty common in the west, around the desert and mountains, and flying at low altitudes.

41. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 2:52 pm

    Thanks Joe, I certainly was wondering. I guess his ELT failed on impact maybe? Is that likely? How come at the point he drops off radar we can’t pinpoint that spot/time and narrow it down from 600 mile radius to WAY, WAY less? Was he even not on radar? That seems weird.

42. James Hoiby
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:02 pm

    @Lee

    Definitely an airplane, but probably one in flight since there is no damage trail left in the brush. However, just to be safe, I passed the info to Sgt. Bennett at the Rescue Coordination Center in Langley as it’s definitely worth checking out. She said she will pass it on to the team handling the Fosset search. Good eye Lee!

43. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:06 pm

    Nevermind - Steve Fosset being rich and all, and taking off from the Hilton magnates strip filed no Flight plan. This still doesn’t explain how he isn’t on any radar, even in Nevada - wait is he? He was around/near plenty of radar pickups - esp military. What does the FAA have to say to this? No flight plan so his plane never showed on radar or they have no idea where he was going? And quote:
    ” Ryan said authorities are analyzing information from radar intelligence to try to track Fossett.

    Helicopters and planes from Naval Air Station Fallon, in Fallon, Nevada, the Nevada Air National Guard and the California Highway Patrol are helping in the search.”
    http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/.....index.html

    So where is he? We can’t pinpoint his spot on radar last and narrow down his position? Seriously, did he just disappear? A 600 mile radius on a plane and all these people looking for him and nothing. I don’t get it - AT ALL.

44. Fabian Schonholz
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:12 pm

    On one hand I am sad because the dude is not found yet. But on the other, amazing how Technology can do wonderful things.

45. D'n
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:12 pm

    Lee–

    I reported your find (crediting you, of course) through the Amazon Turk thing. We’ll see what they find — it’s definitely A plane…

46. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:18 pm

    @dustin

    Under VFR (visual flight rules) in the airspace he was flying in, you don’t need to file a flight plan. That’s very common, and completely legal, and has nothing to do with his financial status. In fact, a flight plan might do you no good if you are not flying between two points. He was apparently going to scout out areas for a land speed record he was going to attempt, and was likely flying over a large area. If so, how do you file a flight plan for this? It might not reduce the area they have to search at all.

    You are actually only required to file a flight plan for IFR (instrument flight rules) flights.

    Keep in mind that the plane was probably flying very low (since he was surveying spots on the ground) and slow (plane has a top speed of 145 mph, and was likely going slower). It might have been in and out of even military radar coverage.

    It’s probably 400 mile radius tops, but that’s still 500,000 square miles! They are probably searching based on estimates of where he was likely to have been flying, instead of the whole of the area centered on the departure airport.

47. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:26 pm

    Thanks again Joe for clarifying. I am actually quite upset he hasn’t been found because I find it so hard to believe we lost track, or didn’t have a record of his plane, or that he wasn’t prepared with the simplest gadget he could afford that would able us to certainly pinpoint him. 400 miles is better than 600, but still, on a small plane, thats a huge distance and in my honest and humble opinion it should be something more like 10-20 miles. Perhaps it’s time to change something fundamentally so this doesn’t happen again. Very sad when a huge and influential magnate can drop out of the sky without anyone knowing where.

48. James Hoiby
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:30 pm

    @Lee

    Also re: your find, the plane you see is not in the earlier Google satellite data, only the GeoEye Ikonos 1m dataset taken this week, so it’s definitely either an airborne airplane (one of the searchers?) or a new crash.

    I also could have been wrong about a lack of a trail in the brush. There is a linear feature (dark line) just south of the aircraft that would be consistent with a landing on a heading of about 010 degrees.

49. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:30 pm

    For instance, when Steve flew around the world in the balloon did we, or anyone EVER, EVER lose track of his location? No.

50. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:38 pm

    @dustin

    Well, I’m hoping that he’s okay too, but I don’t feel optimistic. I bet he had an ELT in the plane. He also apparently had a watch with a builtin GPS ELT. The fact that neither has been activated is worrisome. It’s possible he landed on a dirt strip somewhere, or a dry lakebed, and something else happened unrelated to the airplane.

    As for changing something to prevent this, I’m not sure what you could change (especially since we don’t even know yet what has happened to him). At some point, you have to decide whether to fly at all or not, and adding 3, 4 or more ELTs can’t prevent every possible bad outcome.

    There are thousand of uneventful VFR / IFR flights every day. Obviously we have heard of this because he is fairly well known.

    I know how it probably seems if you are not a pilot, but flying is already a fairly well regulated (and hence expensive) activity.

51. James Hoiby
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:38 pm

    @ Dustin

    “I find it so hard to believe … he wasn’t prepared with the simplest gadget he could afford that would able us to certainly pinpoint him.”

    All “Part 91″ aircraft (basically non-commercial) are REQUIRED to carry an emergency locator device that satellites can home in on, and are required to test the device replace the batteries at specified intervals. Some reasons it may not be transmitting:

    1. Malfunction. Rare but happens from time-to-time.
    2. Aircraft hit so hard ELT was destroyed in impact.
    3. Aircraft hit so soft ELT was not triggered, but pilot was incapacitated and could not manually trigger it. (There have been cases where pilots have died in the air due to medical conditions and the airplane just happened to make a soft landing, or just kept flying so far that it would not be in the expected search area.)
    4. Aircraft is underwater.

52. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:42 pm

    We can hope for the best, but even a downed F16 pilot in serb territory for 5 days is a stretch. He made it out alive, maybe Steve will to. Lets hope so. Interesting news on the watch. With all the technology we have I would think this can be prevented - the fact of - we can’t find him and know he’s missing in this 600 square mile area. That there is the part that really irks me.

53. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:43 pm

    @dustin

    Regarding his around the world flight, there were certainly times he was out of radar coverage. I’m not sure what they had to relay his position to the ground, but he could know his own from GPS. Perhaps he relayed coordinates via a satellite phone / uplink? That’s a very expensive proposition for a small, 140 hp plane.

    I’m not sure if this is true in the very last few years, but it used to be that transatlantic flights on commmercial jets would be out of radio contact with controllers in Europe / North America for quite some time (30 minutes) via their normal radios.

54. Walter
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:48 pm

    Wow check this out:

    38°28′55.67″N
    119°24′18.15″W

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/eschappe/1352481382/
    http://tinypic.com/fullsize.php?pic=5y2z9ya

55. Walter
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:49 pm

    ^^^ That was found using the google earth KML file
    http://s3.amazonaws.com/fossett/geoeye-color.kml

56. Dustin
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:50 pm

    @ Joe

    Thanks again.

    “That’s a very expensive proposition for a small, 140 hp plane.”

    For someone worth billions and to safeguard his life, that, is nothing. I would of had the 140hp plane decked out - wouldn’t you? Hindsight is 20/20 I suppose.

57. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 3:56 pm

    @dustin

    Well, I wasn’t necessarily talking about Steve Fossett. I was referring to requiring those types of things for the rest of us, who don’t have that kind of money. Also, it’s not simply a matter of money. Sometimes adding more technology doesn’t help. As James pointed out, there are possibilites for things that happened that would have not been helped by any existing technology.

    Also, you can’t always throw arbitrary equipment onto a plane. Planes have weight restrictions, and their electrical systems have power restrictions, etc. There aren’t a lot of extras to be found in a Decathlon.

58. Jedi Wright
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 4:15 pm

    @Dave:

    No unfortunately I haven’t yet, though I’ve had several strong recommendations I do so. But from what I have just seen of it, as mentioned on Wikipedia, I think it’s just moved up on my list:

    “…the minds (the “Atlases”) of the world are disappearing because of one particular “destroyer” taking them away.”

    -certainly seems relevant in light of my fanciful perception on all of this.

    @Jeremy/Joe:

    Nod to both of your viewpoints, though I might interject also that while everyone searching surely has the best of intentions at heart, a select few (powerhouses) probably but can’t help capitalize on the opp for a wee bit o’ extra publicity.

59. Lee
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 4:17 pm

    @James Hoiby

    See what you mean about the trail at 010.

    Well, it’s been reported now, so lets just keep our fingers crossed.

60. Joe
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 4:55 pm

    @jedi

    Sure, I don’t disagree. I guess my point is that if they get publicity for something that actually works and provides a valuable service, I think it is a win for the people who can benefit from it from the increased publicity as well as the provider of the service.

    For example, suppose something similar happens next week. Amazon may have a page up for a missing person that day, and have lots of people aware of what to do based on their prior experience here.

61. Jim
    

    September 9th, 2007 at 5:12 pm

    Presently, most aircraft operators are mandated to carry an ELT and have the option to choose between either a 121.5 MHz ELT or a 406 MHz ELT. The 406 are much better and cost about $1,500. The Reno Gazette Journal reported that Barron Hilton’s plane did have an ELT. In addition, Fosset was reportedly wearing a Breitling watch with an ELT - the watch requires manaual activation. Batteries for the watch are really expensive. It is reported locally today that the official search is suspended, I sure many will still keep looking.

62. Anon
    

    September 10th, 2007 at 1:15 am

    Get the latest map and check out coordinates: 38°24′58.82″N 119°13′28.30″W

63. Json
    

    September 10th, 2007 at 3:20 am

    From the CTV article: “At the end of a discouraging week…”

    So, finding half a dozen previously undiscovered crash sites in one week is “discouraging”?

    Yeah, damn those other lost souls for inconveniencing the search for our beloved irresponsible attention whore! Damn them to hell! We know his name, so therefore, he’s more important!

64. Joe
    

    September 10th, 2007 at 5:46 am

    @json

    Seeing as it looks like most of those crashes are very old (the article mentioned decades for some), I’d say it is discouraging that they didn’t find the person who still has a chance to be alive.

65. Paul
    

    September 11th, 2007 at 9:52 pm

    Since he is most likely dead due to a plane crash the searchers should use radar and other tools to look for scavenger birds hovering like turkey vultures and ravens.

66. lucy in the sky
    

    September 12th, 2007 at 11:54 pm

    …Can and will…. anyone PLEASE…. pass on LITTLE LOST “BULLS”

    EXACT BIRTH TIME…. ON HIS BIRTH ….CERT. PLEASE!!!!

    WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU STEVE?….. Help us find you!
    That will help some of us do our JOB to SEARCH another way.
    I’m Sorry for Dear Peggy for having a Wild Child for a Husband
    …it sure can wear thin at times…he just may still be alive and
    waiting ….so don’t give up YET!… My feeling are he had bad
    book reviews, he took a single glass of water???? I just do not get that…
    Cock sure can be dead sure…did he plan to fly into the trees so
    he would not have another Christmas? Was he ill? Have a gal friend? A guy friend? Getting old…lost the loving feeling?….FOOLISH?
    Like JIM GRAY…Dumping mommy ashes alone…not a person with him
    at that very sad time….and just gone….forever??? I’m CURIOUS YELLOW
    For now my life is a daily adventure….with out all the big BUCKS… maybe some day we will know…. for it really happened to THEM NOT US!….But had the day been different! WE WOULD FEEL MUCH BETTER!!!!! HURRY HOME!…WILL KEEP THE LIGHT ON!!!!!

67. nick
    

    September 13th, 2007 at 9:26 am

    after an admittedly quick browse in Google Earth, this struck my interest:

    38°40′02.54″N
    119°08′00.65″W

    maybe too far away from the search site? maybe it’s just rocks?

68. Ken Barbalace
    

    September 13th, 2007 at 10:51 am

    @Nick, Are you sure you are looking at the new satellite photos that are part of the KML overlay for the Steve Fossett search or are you looking at the old satellite photos? There is nothing of interest on the new photos at the coordinates you listed. As has been frequently the case, the old and new satellite photos don’t line up perfectly, and on the old photos I saw a rock formation on the coordinates you provided. On the new photos this rock formation is to the east slightly.

69. nick
    

    September 14th, 2007 at 12:26 am

    @Ken

    Just to doublecheck, I opened the KML file (didn’t realize it also put an overlay on the image) and went to that location, but I saw the same thing.
    So I’m not realy sure if that overlay is actually working for me… (no slight move to the left)

    OTOH, I can see it on google maps as well. So they’re probably rocks, as you say…

70. Brian Ruddell
    

    September 14th, 2007 at 3:01 pm

    I have been on many search and rescue flights in north eastern British Columbia, Canada. Some have lasted a whole month. Some pilots have survived in the cold north for a month or more. Steve could still be alive and well. Not all ELT,s are capable of working properly due to the crash
    circumstances. This makes for a much larger and longer search. The Primary Search Area now becomes the full radius of the amount of fuel aboard the plane and it’s range from the point of takeoff. We have covered the entire Search Zone a total of three times before any consideration to suspend the search. Mountian terrain is very difficult and time consuming searching. You must remember that you may be looking for wreckage.

71. TJ
    

    September 14th, 2007 at 7:09 pm

    Can someone lookup these coordinates on the updated google earth images (The KML file)? Google Earth crashes on startup for me on Ubuntu for some reason.

    38.423996,-119.036179

    Looking through 250 images this was by far the most promising. I have submitted it through mechanical turk.

    Thanks,

    TJ

72. Rennie Goyette
    

    September 15th, 2007 at 7:38 pm

    Jeremy Moy and James Hoiby — I was involved in having the CAP look for a buddy who didn’t show up as scheduled on a Thursday eve. I was called on Monday and informed of his absence. I contacted Wash. DC and got the Air Force to authorize a search. My friend hit a peak (bad weather So of Las Vegas) and the ELT __121.5__ did not go off. CAP sent a Helo to a suspected site. The Helo while hovering over the plane, sent it another 1000 feet down the mountain side—–the ELT sent a signal. This was 9 (nine) days later. My friend was– forunately– killed on impact. He was found still safety belted in the pilot seat. At least the mountain lions and other vermin didn’t get to him. So much for 121.5 ELT’s. The 406 MHz should be more reliable—but at a price. By the way — he didn’t file a flight plan either. I didn’t today flying to lunch 70 miles from my home field. Not rqd. then again I’m not in the Nevada hills.

73. Lee
    

    September 17th, 2007 at 11:50 am

    @TJ

    Can’t see anything special at the coordinates you suggested. I’ve uploaded an image here:

    http://www.covesc.org.uk/uploa.....himage.jpg

    Looks like a mobile home in the top left corner and a truck on the road.

    IMHO

74. Paul Annett
    

    September 18th, 2007 at 2:51 am

    I can’t help thinking that Steve might be found faster if the Mechanical Turk website was easier to use. In this instance, bad interface design could mean the difference between life and death.

    I’ve blogged about it here:
    http://paulannett.co.uk/mechanical-turk-ui-design

75. SOG
    

    September 20th, 2007 at 8:09 pm

    Lee, TJ

    have a look at these coords, iand tell me what you see ( and yes I have logged it )

    lat=38.3713946336, lon=-119.781454112

    SOG

76. SOG
    

    September 20th, 2007 at 8:49 pm

    re my previous coords, lat=38.3713946336, lon=-119.781454112,
    this is in the same area that is discussed in the following story of a plane crash
    http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/09/.....index.html

    if I use google maps ( to get an older image) there is a lot of perpendicular faulting in the area so that might be the cause but assuming that the same lat/lon coords actually map to the same spot (big ask I know) then there doesnt seem to be a preexisting feature that I can see.

    anyone have a view?

77. Lee
    

    September 21st, 2007 at 4:17 pm

    @SOG

    I can’t see anything in that area I’m afraid.

    Heard yesterday that the search is now officially off. I suppose we can still keep looking.

78. Don Richardson
    

    September 22nd, 2007 at 12:43 pm

    At 38.49625,-118.58740 it looks like an plane.

79. Don Richardson
    

    September 22nd, 2007 at 1:18 pm

    I used the wrong coordinates in my last comment .Tparoper coordinates are

    38.49625,-118.92073. I think it looks like a plane

80. AyJay
    

    September 22nd, 2007 at 2:40 pm

    You can post your sightings of interest at my blogsite:
    http://fossettsightings.blogspot.com

81. BIRTH TIME WANTED
    

    September 22nd, 2007 at 4:28 pm

    PLEASE POST STEVE FOSSETT’S EXACT BIRTH TIME THAT IS NOT TOO MUCH TO AS???? FOR ALL WHO LOVE AND ADMIRE THIS MAN…I WANT OTHERS
    TO …”HELP”…FIND HIM…IS THERE A FEAR TO PUT THAT IN PUBLIC VIEW.
    IT KILLS ME …THIS MAN COULD BE HUNG UP SOME WHERE WAITING AND WONDERING WHY WON’T THEY COME FOR ME…I LAUGH THAT HE HIDE SO “OUT OF SIGHT”…BUT I BELIEVE HE IS STILL WAITING FOR OUR HELP!!!!
    ON STEVE’S BIRTH CERT. IS TIME DAY MONTH AND YEAR BORN…WHAT MAKES THIS SO IMPOSSIBLE TO TELL US THE TIME!!!!! I’M MAD!!!!! STEVE DESERVED ALL THE HELP FROM ALL THE RESOURCES….SOME ONE SHORT CHANGED STEVE…AND THAT BREAKS MY HEART…STILL WAITING!….HELP!

82. Don Richardson
    

    September 22nd, 2007 at 9:52 pm

    Try coordinates 38.18744,-118.81341

83. Don Richardson
    

    September 22nd, 2007 at 10:16 pm

    try coordinates 38.1874,-118.7795

84. Dorothy Purdie
    

    September 23rd, 2007 at 10:32 am

    Why can’t my husband and I get the search for Steve Fossett maps, we haven’t finished looking!

85. Nick
    

    September 24th, 2007 at 2:51 am

    I have gone through some of the pics and hope many people do the same. The area that is being searched contains very rugged terrain that is off limits to the public, mostly for military purposes. Even the few areas that are available for the public to search on the ground are extremely remote with very few roads. For these reasons and the weather challenges, the use of technology would be a great step forward.

    As for the “average joe”… think about it…. if a couple of people like Steve are found with the technology, there would be a need for the service and an interest in people being able to help from home and for companies to sponsor it for the publicity. Boils down to we help a few millionaires and hopefully 10,000 people can help us look for a lost family member in the future.

86. Gregor
    

    September 26th, 2007 at 7:45 am

    Dear Group,

    I have just joined and do not know how to refine my search.

    I have found some unidentified thing west of Las Vegas about 35-40%
    along a direct way to Fresno (as the crow flies).
    It is at 36 degrees 28′ 19.26″N and 116 degrees 44′53.19W

    Looking at it from 100 m eye alt, it looks to be about 5-6 times
    the length of a small car. What is it? possibly a wing of an aircraft
    that struck the mountain?

    Please assist me and advise me on how to proceed and refine the search skills, as I am not familiar with Google Earth etc.

    Thank you

    Gregor in Riga
    gregor_macd@yahoo.se
    Tel + 371-26377469

87. David Slater
    

    September 29th, 2007 at 6:53 pm

    Try coordinates 37 44 00.55,-117 57 17.73

88. LUCY'S GETTING MAD!!!!!
    

    October 5th, 2007 at 12:41 pm

    THIS STINKS…WHY IS STEVE FOSSETT HIDDEN? WHAT IS THE REAL TRUTH?
    THIS MAD MAN DID NOT VANISH INTO THIN AIR!!!!…WHO TOOK HIM????
    EXACT BIRTH TIME ……….WOULD BE HELPFUL SINCE HE WILL NOT….BE RETURNING….UPRIGHT…CAN SOME ONE STOP MY POSTING PLEASE….
    I JUST NEED A TIME HE WAS BORN…… IT’S ON HIS BIRTH CERT…..
    I KNOW HE HAD MANY FRIENDS….THAT SEEMED TO CARE…..
    WHEN HE WAS ALIVE….WHERE ARE YOU NOW??????
    HELP…PASS ON THIS ONE PIECE OF INFORMATION….(mad lucy!)