--- description: Amelia Earhart may have survived her final flight only to be later captured by the Japanese, according to a newly discovered photograph. title: This Photo May Prove Amelia Earhart Survived Her Final Flight image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltef73e03dda428dee/6988d28d86f68e440a6e5403/amelia-earhart.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [History](/section/history/) ## History Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Aviation](/tag/aviation/) ## Aviation Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # This Photo May Prove Amelia Earhart Survived Her Final Flight ## Video: Does This Photo Prove Amelia Earhart Survived Her Final Flight? [Watch (HLS stream): Does This Photo Prove Amelia Earhart Survived Her Final Flight?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/3wVKm0MX.m3u8) (1:36)  _Published 2017-07-05. A recently-discovered photograph is turning the mystery surrounding Amelia Earhart’s 1937 disappearance on its head, leading a handful of experts to believe the celebrated aviator and women’s rights role model actually survived her final flight_  by [Melissa Chan](/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:07 AM CUTPublished: Jul 5, 2017 3:29 PM CUT  Undated picture taken in the 1930s of American aviator Amelia Earhart, at the controls of her plane. Undated picture taken in the 1930s of American aviator Amelia Earhart, at the controls of her plane.AFP/Getty Images  by [Melissa Chan](/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:07 AM CUTPublished: Jul 5, 2017 3:29 PM CUT Famed aviator [Amelia Earhart](http://time.com/4829029/amelia-earhart-anniversary/ "undefined") may have survived her round-the-world attempt only to be later captured by Japanese forces, according to a newly discovered photograph. Investigators behind a new History channel documentary believe the trailblazing American pilot is pictured in a photo found in a National Archives file. The image purportedly shows Earhart alive after her plane fell low on fuel during her mission to become the first woman to circumnavigate the globe. The [photo](https://twitter.com/HISTORY/status/882600212103139328 "undefined") depicts a woman, believed to be Earhart, and a man who closely resembles her navigator, Fred Noonan, on a dock. A Japanese ship can be seen in the background carrying what appears to be Earhart’s plane.  Les Kinney/National Archives Former FBI Executive Assistant Director Shawn Henry dives into the new possible clue in a two-hour History special called [_Amelia Earhart: The Lost Evidence_](http://www.history.com/specials/amelia-earhart-the-lost-evidence/amelia-earhart-the-lost-evidence-preview "undefined"), which premieres Sunday. Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, achieving the feat in 1932\. She vanished somewhere over the Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937, after her plane ran low on fuel on her round-the-world trip. 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