- Officials will review data to see if satellite information has been "accurately interpreted"
- More high-tech devices will be used over an expanded search area
- The search area will expand to deep water that has "never been mapped"
- Australia estimates the next phase will cost $60 million
(CNN) -- More than 300 flights.
Over 3,000 hours in the air.
A staggering 4.6 million square kilometers of ocean.
The numbers speak to the breadth of the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.
The results speak to the fruitlessness of it.
The plane, carrying 239 people, disappeared on March 8. And despite an expansive search involving 26 countries, officials have nothing to show for it.
So authorities are moving on to the next phase of the search -- one that will be even more challenging.
"We know very clearly the area of the follow-up search will be even broader, with more difficulties and tougher tasks," Chinese Transport Minister Yang Chuantang said Monday.
What's next
Australian, Malaysian and Chinese officials will meet in Canberra, Australia, on Wednesday to hash out plans for the next stage of the hunt.
One group will analyze the data and information collected so far. Another will look at the resources needed.
The data audit will look at information gathered since the beginning of the search.
"It will also look again at the satellite information that's been accumulated so that we can make sure that it's been accurately interpreted," Australian Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said.
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