The search for a prospector missing in the Northern Goldfields has been renewed, with increased hope following the discovery of personal belongings 15km from the last sighting.

Four elite trackers have been airlifted into the hunt for Michael Keith Graham, who has been missing for 12 days in barren country.

The search’s incident controller, Acting Inspector Ricky Chadwick, said the signs of life were 24 hours old when discovered on Tuesday afternoon.

The belongings included a small magnifying glass mounted on a lanyard hung in a tree and a pair of underpants.

Nearby, in the shadow of a remote windmill, “SOS” had been scraped in the dirt. Five kilometers down a road to the east, police found more messages in the dirt.

They read: “Walking” and “Very Weak”. Another 5km east, police found a line drawn across the road, a second SOS plea for help, and an arrow pointing back west.