Malaysia today released raw satellite data used to determine the path of the missing Flight MH370, over two months after relatives of 239 people, including five Indians, aboard the plane demanded that it be made public.

Malaysia’s Department of Civil Aviation released 47 pages of raw data obtained from British satellite firm Inmarsat which was used to determine the path of the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 that mysteriously vanished on March 8.

The document contains hundreds of lines of highly technical communication logs between the jetliner and Inmarsat’s satellite system.

The data released includes the hourly “handshakes” between the plane and a communications satellite that led investigators to conclude that Flight MH370 ended its journey far off Australia in the southern Indian Ocean.

A team of international experts used the satellite data — in combination with other information, including radar data and engine performance calculations — to conclude that the plane ended up in a remote area of the southern Indian Ocean.

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

Malaysia believes the plane was deliberately diverted by someone on board.

Meanwhile, some passengers’ families, unsatisfied by the official explanation of the plane’s fate, say they want an independent analysis of the complex information, a process that could take some time.

“The first thing we’re going to expect feedback on is does the data look right,” said Sarah Bajc, whose partner, Philip Wood, was on the missing jet. “Is it as complete as we’re being led to believe it is?”

She said, though, that she was “annoyed” that Inmarsat and Malaysian authorities had not released the raw data in its entirety.

“I see no reason for them to have massaged this before giving it to us,” she was quoted as saying by the CNN.

Families of the passengers on board the plane have been demanding that the raw data be made public. The fate of the plane and those on board has become one of the great aviation mysteries of modern times.

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 holding back information.

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

According to CNN Safety Analyst, David Soucie certain key elements, which would allow independent experts to fully test the official conclusion, are missing from the data in the document.

“There’s not enough information to say whether they made an error,” he said. “I think we’re still going to be looking for more.”

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.

Meanwhile, a seabed search for the missing plane is continuing in waters far west of the Australian city of Perth.

The robotic submarine Bluefin-21 from the US Navy, is still being operated off the Australian vessel Ocean Shield.

The Bluefin-21, which can identify objects by creating a sonar map of the sea floor, restarted its mission last week after experiencing technical problems.

It is expected to leave the search area tomorrow and return to base on May 31, said a previous statement from Australia’s Joint Agency Coordination Centre, which is leading the search.

The Bluefin-21 completed the initial search of the area where acoustic signals thought to be from flight recorders were heard without finding anything concrete.

The Australian government is now preparing for a fresh deepsea search using commercially-contracted equipment. The operation is expected to cost nearly $60 million.

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