September 8, 2007

By The AVweb Editorial Staff

You (Yes, You) Can Help back to top  AVweb Invites You to Join the Search for Steve Fossett CLICK FOR A LARGER IMAGE One example of a flagged lead, from an AVweb reader known on Amazon as "bellanca4" In case you haven't heard, there's a world-wide effort to find Steve Fossett, and you can help without leaving the comfort of your computer desk. Below is everything you need to know to be part of the largest search ever undertaken, thanks to an amazing system called the Mechanical Turk that was developed by Amazon.com and uses satellite imagery supplied by DigitalGlobe and other providers. Follow the links to review new satellite imagery of the search area and instructions on how to possibly spot Fossett's plane. You can also look for a straight scrape in the ground, or maybe some letters created out of rocks or other material that someone on the ground might try to use as a signal. Use your imagination, and don't be shy about sounding the alert. Good hunting, and thanks from everyone at AVweb. Go here to help. A few tip and tricks from AVweb editor Jennifer Whitley, who's been helping with the online search: Read and follow the instructions on the Fossett Mechanical Turk home page carefully. It ain't rocket science -- if you know your way around a computer, you can help. For better detail, view the images in Google Earth. (Download and install this free application if you don't have it already.) Load the KML file provided on the Fossett Mechanical Turk home page to ensure you're viewing current (not cached) satellite data. Then cut and paste the latitude/longitude of the area you're reviewing into Google Earth. Use Google Earth's pan, tilt and zoom features to uncover more detail on the area you're reviewing. If in doubt, be conservative and mark the image for review. It will be passed along to search-and-rescue specialists for further analysis. AVweb Readers Who Are Already Helping back to top  Have AVweb Readers Spotted Fossett's Plane? Sure, it's a long shot, but AVweb readers taking part in the Mechanical Turk effort to locate Steve Fossett through Google Earth imagery has found something that doesn't look like it belongs on a mountainside. Have a close look at the accompanying image. It looks to us like it could be the fuselage and wings of a small plane. We'll likely know soon enough if this is Fossett's Super Decathlon (or a combination of rock and shadow that looks like it) but in the meantime, the important thing is to keep looking. The Mechanical Turk is an Amazon.com service that harnesses the power of satellite imagery from Google Earth with the discriminating eyes of humans with access to the Internet, which means just about anyone with a few minutes to spare can help find Fossett. Humans are still much better at picking objects out of photos that don't appear to belong there than computers are.The Mechanical Turk is making available satellite imagery covering the search area for Fossett. Initial images are in black and white but color images may be available later. Those logging on are asked to have a detailed look at each image they receive. If they spot something that could be Fossett's plane, they are asked to mark that image with a click on the appropriate selection. That will put the image into a higher level of rotation and if others also mark it, it will result in a team of search specialists viewing the image and possibly alerting rescue officials. Go here to help.