• published: 22 Mar 2014
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MH370 LATEST: China says satellite has located 72ft object in Southern Indian Ocean 75 miles from where previous possible wreckage was located.. as Australian pilots spot small objects Malaysian transport minister announced new satellite pictures today He said the Chinese government was sending ships to investigate Images taken four days ago close to sighing made by Australian satellites RAAF search teams spot small pieces of debris floating in the search zone But RNZAF Orion sent to confirm sighting finds only seaweed in the area Australian PM says search will continue until they are 'satisfied it is futile' It is now two weeks since the Malaysia Airlines flight vanished without trace A large piece of floating debris has been spotted in the remote Indian Ocean search zone for missing flight MH370, it was revealed today. Chinese satellites picked up signs of a 'suspicious' object measuring 72ft by 42ft in an area 75 miles west of where Australia reported an earlier sighting of floating debris. The images were taken at lunchtime on March 18, Chinese state media reported, just two days after the sighting by Australian satellites singled out the area in the southern Indian Ocean. Since the announcement, Australian search teams scouring the remote area reported seeing a number of small objects including a wooden pallet. A Royal New Zealand Air Force P3 Orion plane with specialist electro-optic observation equipment was diverted to the location, arriving after the first aircraft left but only reported sighting clumps of seaweed. The Chinese satellite discovery was revealed this morning by Malaysia's acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein at a press conference where he gave the latest updates on the search for the missing airliner. He made the announcement after being handed a handwritten note, adding that Chinese authorities would make an official announcement 'in a couple of hours'. Mr Hussein told reporters at the press conference in Kuala Lumpur: 'The Chinese ambassador has received satellite images of floating objects in the southern corridor and they will be sending ships to investigate. 'This floating object is 22m long by 30m wide.' His figures were contradicted by Chinese media, suggesting that portions of the message were lost in translation. 'I'm going to follow this up immediately,' Mr Hussein added. Mr Hussein earlier told reporters that conditions in the search area are 'very challenging' with a tropical cyclone forecast to move in. 'In the area where possible objects were identified by Australian authorities, there are strong currents and rough seas,' he said. 'A cyclone warning has been declared for Tropical Cyclone Gillian, which is located in the southern corridor. Very strong winds and rough seas are expected there today.' China said an image of the object had been captured by its high-definition earth observation satellite 'Gaofen-1'. The location was south by west of the possible debris announced by Australia on Thursday. The latest possible lead in the hunt for the jetliner comes two weeks after it disappeared from civilian radar screens less than an hour after taking-off from the Malaysian capital on a scheduled flight to Beijing. The announcement came after the first Australian Orion aircraft to make a sortie over the target zone for missing Flight MH370 returned without success. Flying Officer Peter Moore, the aircraft's captain, said a combination of 'less than ideal' weather and sea conditions had closed in on the flight. He said his crew had flown through 'a thick layer of cloud from 2000 feet to 500 feet, isolate showers and sea fog above the surface'. However, the aircraft had managed to cover 100 per cent of its planned search area, with RAAF officers manning the visual observer station on board. 'However, we weren't able to find any evidence of wreckage from the missing Malaysian aircraft,' officer Moore said. Since Australia announced the first image of what could be parts of the aircraft on Thursday, the international search for the plane has focused on an expanse of ocean more than 2,000 km (1,200 miles) southwest of Perth. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said one of its aircraft reported sighting a number of 'small objects' with the naked eye, including a wooden pallet, within a radius of five km. The RNZAF P-3 Orion aircraft sent to take a closer look only reported seeing clumps of seaweed. It dropped a marker buoy to track the movement. 'A merchant ship in the area has been tasked to relocate and seek to identify the material,' AMSA said in a statement. The latest developments came after Australia's acting prime minister today said the air and sea search for missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 'will continue while there's still hope'. Warren Truss said no time limit had been placed on the operation which will continue 'indefinitely' and 'until we are absolutely satisfied further searching is futile.'