Why wasn’t the Electra found when a U.S. Navy
survey party from U.S.S. Bushnell spent a week mapping the island in
November 1939?As with the 1937 British visit and the 1938/’39 New Zealand visit, the 1939 Navy survey was focused inland. The material on the reef was obscured by high tide at least half of the time and, during periods of high seas, all of the time. When it was visible it was not recognizable from a distance.
