A grainy sonar image reignites excitement and skepticism over Earhart's final flight

There's new interest in one of the past century's most alluring mysteries and a grainy sonar image is at the heart of both excitement and skepticism

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- A grainy sonar image recorded by a private pilot has reinvigorated interest in one of the past century’s most alluring mysteries: What happened to Amelia Earhart when her plane vanished during her flight around the world in 1937?

Numerous expeditions have turned up nothing, only confirming that swaths of ocean floor held no trace of her twin-tailed monoplane. Tony Romeo now believes his new South Carolina-based sea exploration company captured an outline of the iconic American’s Lockheed 10-E Electra.

Archaeologists and explorers are hopeful. But whether the tousled-haired pilot's plane lies at the roughly 16,000-foot (4,800-meter) depth remains to be seen. And debates abound about the proper handling of whatever object is discovered.

Archivists are hopeful that Romeo’s Deep Sea Vision is close to solving the puzzle — if for no other reason than to return attention to Earhart’s accomplishments.

Regardless, the search is on for the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean.