Flight MH370: Malaysia releases raw satellite data

Inmarsat, the company whose satellites communicated with the missing plane in its last hours, had said it did not have the authority to release the data.

But last week, Inmarsat and Malaysian authorities said they were trying to make the raw data accessible.

Publication of the raw satellite data could allow for independent analysis of what happened on March 8, the day the plane veered sharply off its planned route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing and dropped off radar screens.

Malaysia believes the plane- carrying 239 people, including five Indians - was deliberately diverted by someone on board.

The Malaysian government has been criticised for its handling of the tragedy, particularly by the relatives of the Chinese passengers on board the plane, besides being accused of hiding information.

Analysts have said the data could help discount some theories about what happened to the jetliner, and potentially fuel new ones.

Malaysia and Australia, the two countries at the forefront of the search, have said that an analysis by international experts of all the available information -- including the satellite data -- leads them to conclude that the plane ended up in the southern Indian Ocean.