# MH370 disappearance search efforts

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/mh370-disappearance-search-efforts
> Updated: 2026-09-05T04:01:10.000Z. Sources: 5. Developments: 3.

The search for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 remains unresolved twelve years after its disappearance. Recent efforts by Ocean Infinity, which concluded a campaign in January 2026, involved mapping over 140,000 square kilometers of the ocean floor but failed to locate any wreckage. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has noted that defining a precise search zone is difficult due to limited satellite data, with the potential investigation area reaching up to 1.2 million square kilometers.

New scientific analysis has recently challenged the established search parameters. Researchers examining hydroacoustic data from the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization sensor network reported finding no convincing signals near the ‘Seventh Arc,’ which has been the primary focus of search efforts for over a decade. Instead, they identified a low-frequency signal in the northwest Indian Ocean near the Chagos-Laccadive Ridge, a location significantly distant from previous major search zones.

Despite these challenges, investigators continue to rely on critical satellite data to narrow the search. Official safety reports from Malaysia indicate the aircraft’s SATCOM system made seven automatic connections after losing contact with air traffic control. The final connection, initiated by the aircraft at 00:19 UTC on March 8, 2014, is considered a key piece of evidence. The ATSB refers to the resulting data path as the ‘seventh arc,’ a curve of potential locations in the Indian Ocean spanning approximately 20° South to 40° South. Analysis of frequency shifts during this final communication suggests the aircraft may have been descending rapidly, likely due to fuel exhaustion, as it reached this arc.

## Timeline

### 2026-09-05: MH370 satellite data provides key clues for search efforts

Investigators use the ‘seventh arc’—the final SATCOM signal from MH370 at 00:19 UTC on March 8, 2014—to narrow the search area for the missing aircraft in the Indian Ocean.

5 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/mh370-satellite-data-provides-key-clues-for-search-efforts

### 2026-08-28: MH370 search: New hydroacoustic data suggests potential error in search area

New analysis of hydroacoustic data suggests the search for Malaysia Airlines MH370 may have focused on the wrong area, pointing to a potential signal near the Chagos-Laccadive Ridge.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/mh370-search-new-hydroacoustic-data-suggests-potential-error-in-search-area

### 2026-08-24: MH370 search remains unsolved after 12 years of ocean floor mapping

Twelve years after MH370 vanished, search efforts by Ocean Infinity and others have mapped 140,000 sq km of the ocean floor without success, leaving a potential 1.2 million sq km area unexamined.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/mh370-search-remains-unsolved-after-12-years-of-ocean-floor-mapping

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Cite as: MH370 disappearance search efforts. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/mh370-disappearance-search-efforts