plane. let s look at the underwater devices used. tom, we heard from rosa. how they re using these different pieces of technology, how will this work? in a simple sense, think about what rosa said there, you can get the broadest picture from the least precise equipment. the more precise you get, the slower it all gets. you think about what the chinese were using. they basically went out with a small listening device that wasn t really designed for this type of thing. they said they read something. one thing they doubt that is that pinger is really made for shallow water, not really made for this kind of deep water work where you re talking about two and a half, three miles deep. the level we re at right now, you mentioned it a minute ago, that s the towed pinger locator. it can go to about a half mile off the ocean floor here, listening for the ping of the black box. everybody says a much more robust piece of equipment than the chinese had. but even if you hear something, you can t n
that underwater autonomous vehicle, it would be a very, very, very long time before they could verify or find any sort of wreckage. christine? tell us about the difference in the signal strengths. is that casting any doubt on their findings? reporter: well, the signal that they detected is a total of 33.2 kilohertz, and they re expected to detect a signal of 37.5. houston addressing that at the press conference earlier today, saying that that doesn t necessarily diminish these results, given the conditions out on these vast, deep ocean waters, some 2.8 miles deep. sound can do funny things. and given the fact that the battery life is set to expire, all factors that could affect the signal. so, there s still hope, and they re saying this is at the moment their most promising lead. christine? erin for us in perth, thank you. as for malaysia airlines, officials not talking about what they think happened on board the
signals. as i said no luck so far. this is really critical to this search effort. they are trying to narrow down this potential search field, and they need a third signal, they say, in order to be able to do that. row mary? erin, what are we to make of the fact that the signal detected by the u.s. pinger locater you not the standard beacon frequency and what are authorities saying about that? that s right. the frequency detected was 33.2 expected as 37.5 kilohertz. angus houston was asked about that in the press conference earlier. he responded by saying the manufacturer says the findings are consistent with what we would expect from a black box pinger given the fact they are deep waters, 2.8 miles deep, as well as the fact that temperature could be a factor. the battery life also a factor.
in very deep oceanic water, nothing happens fast. reporter: now, at the moment, the ocean shield is currently in the area where it detected the signals. what they re trying to do now, use that towed ping locator provided by the united states to detect possibly a third signal. if they get that third signal, their hope is they ll be able to triangulate a narrow search area in which they can deploy the bluefin 21, also provided by the united states. it s an unmanned autonomous vehicle, able to go underneath the water. the hope is that they will find some signs of physical wreckage. they say that that is when they will know for sure if this has anything to do with the missing plane. christine? oh, but erin, the water there so deep, some 2.8 miles deep. is this going to be a factor in the verification process? i mean, time is running out. they ve got these important leads, but now they ve got to deal with the deep.
what else could it possibly be? well, angus houston did not have an a answer for had that question. the ocean, the depths that we are talking about is about three miles deep, which is extremely deep, when we are talking about deep ocean waters, sound travels in an inconsistent and funny way. they are being cautious, they want to see signs of wreckage, especially considering the hopes and thoughts of the relativess and families and friends of those missing on board the plane. all right, it is 2:35 in the afternoon there in perth, australia at this point. and off the country s western coast, that is where the search effort has been under way. let s get a sense of the weather conditions there now and bring in meteorologist is a than that moore, i know you have been look engine though that.