People are encouraged to report any debris they suspect that might relate to the missing Malaysian Airline MH370 aircraft to local authorities, the Joint Agency Coordination Center (JACC) said in its weekly report released on Wednesday.
JACC said that since the disappearance of MH370, many items of suspected debris have been handed in by members of the public. These items are potentially very important and people should continue to do so.
JACC explained the procedure of examination of suspected debris.
When debris is reported, photographs of the item are reviewed by Malaysian authorities, in consultation with relevant experts including the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) and Boeing, the manufacturer of the aircraft.
This preliminary examination can often quickly discount items as not being from an aircraft.
Should the item be identified as coming from an aircraft, Malaysia negotiates with the government of the country in which the debris is found to secure custody of the item so that a detailed examination can be undertaken.
In some instances, the construction, composition and presence of unique details and markings have been able to definitively link items to a Boeing 777 and in some cases a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777. This in turn allows for the conclusion to be drawn that the item is almost certainly from MH370.
This kind of analysis can be conducted in Malaysia, with assistance from the aircraft manufacturer but at Malaysia's request, is sometimes conducted in Australia, JACC said.
Some items that have shown evidence of marine life have had further analysis undertaken by Australian experts from Geoscience Australia, the Australian National University and other institutions in the hope that additional information relevant to the search can be gleaned.
In addition, drift analysis is being conducted by the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) in an attempt to determine if debris could have originated from the search area.
Whether items come to Australia to be examined is determined by the Malaysian Investigation Team in consultation with the ATSB on a case by case basis.
JACC noted in the report that more than 110,000 square kilometres of the seafloor have been searched so far.
At a meeting of ministers from Malaysia, Australia and China held on July 22, 2016, it was agreed that should the aircraft not be located in the current search area, and in the absence of credible new evidence leading to the identification of a specific location of the aircraft, the search would be suspended upon completion of the 120,000 square kilometre search area.
This does not mean the termination of the search, JACC said.
"Should credible new information emerge which can be used to identify the specific location of the aircraft, consideration will be given to determining next steps," it said.
Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared on March 8, 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board, most of them being Chinese nationals.
A number of debris have been found off the coast of Africa. Australian Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester confirmed that one piece has been confirmed to be from the missing aircraft and five other pieces are highly likely to be from the aircraft.
