Gregory Herbert, a geoscientist at South Florida, said debris believed to be from MH370 that washed up on the coast of Africa last year was covered in barnacles that could provide clues about the origin of the debris.
His findings in a study were published Wednesday in AGU Advances.
"The flaperon (part of the wing) was covered in barnacles and as soon as I saw that, I immediately began sending emails to the search investigators because I knew the geochemistry of their shells could provide clues to the crash location," Herbert said.
Barnacles grow their shells on a daily basis and the growth patterns are similar to tree rings. Each ring, researchers said, can reveal details about water temperature at the time they formed.
French researchers were among the first to examine the barnacles on the debris. They found the barnacles may be old enough to have formed shortly after the crash.
"If so, the temperatures recorded in those shells could help investigators narrow their search," Herbert added.
The search thus far has covered thousands of miles off the coast of Australia in an area known as The Seventh Arc. The variation in water temperatures there could help pinpoint the location of MH370 wreckage.
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, or MH370, disappeared March 8, 2014, en route from Beijing to Kuala Lumpur with 239 people aboard. Investigators believe it crashed somewhere in the Indian Ocean.
The Malaysian government said the Boeing 777 did not deviate from its flight path by accident, concluding the plane was almost certainly flown manually to wherever it hit the water. It was not on autopilot.
Herbert's analysis on barnacles was published in the journal AGU Advances, with support from the University of California, Davis, and the National University of Ireland Galway.
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