Gardner Island hypothesis

Record	OBS-0113
Category	Unsorted/Other
Status	UNPROVEN
Summary	This theory proposes that Earhart and Noonan crash-landed on Gardner Island (now Nikumaroro) in the Phoenix Islands, about 350 nautical miles south of Howland. Proponents, including TIGHAR, suggest they survived as castaways for a time. Evidence includes bones found in 1940 that may be Earhart's and a cosmetics jar fragment.
Origin	The theory gained traction in the 1960s and was popularized by the International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) starting in the 1980s.
Claimed	Earhart and Noonan followed the 157/337 line and landed on Gardner Island's reef. They sent radio distress calls from the island, heard by amateur radio operators. Bones found on Nikumaroro in 1940 are likely Earhart's. A fragment of a cosmetics jar found on the island may be Earhart's freckle cream.
Evidence / consensus	The Gardner Island hypothesis remains unproven. The bones were initially identified as a male, and later analysis suggesting they were Earhart's is disputed. No definitive evidence has been found.

> OBSERVER NOTE:
TIGHAR has spent decades chasing this lead. The evidence is suggestive but far from conclusive. The island's reef would have been a desperate landing spot.

Sources

Sources are external and provided for verification. Listing does not imply the Observer endorses their claims.