Forensic investigators are examining "anomalies" in the grounds of the former Bayview home of Sydney missing woman Lynette Dawson.
Officers are digging by hand in a bid to finally rule out any suggestion Ms Dawson's body is buried at the home.
NSW Police and Forensic Services search the former home of missing woman Lynette Dawson, at Bayview on the northern beaches, in Sydney. Source: AAP
Homicide Squad Commander Scott Cook said officers will feed the resulting material into a sifter.
Police said a conviction is not dependent on officers finding her remains.
Ms Dawson's husband - a former professional rugby league player - has long been a suspect in the case.
Chris Dawson, who played for the Newtown Jets, has consistently denied any involvement in his wife's disappearance.
Police began digging at the property on Sydney's northern beaches on Wednesday and expect to be there for at least five days.
Four areas around the home and in the backyard near a clothesline and pool - which was there before she was believed murdered - are being examined.
The areas being explored have been examined previously but not with the new technologies now available.
"Previously when we conducted examinations here, there was a number of anomalies in the ground," Det Sup Cook said.
"They were inspected previously. We'll revisit them."
Some neighbours on Wednesday were shocked digging had resumed as the sounds of power tools disturbed the normally peaceful suburb.
The mysterious disappearance of the 33-year-old mother has been the subject of a popular News Corp Australia podcast called Teacher's Pet.
"It's all about getting justice for Lyn," Det Sup Cook said on Wednesday.
Lynette Dawson, a mother of two girls, was last seen alive in January 1982.
Ms Dawson spoke to her mother on the evening of January 8, while she was at home in Bayview with her husband Christopher.
She made lunch plans for the following day at Northbridge Baths but never showed up. Ms Dawson was reported missing by her husband on February 18.
The NSW Director of Public Prosecutions has twice declined to charge a known person with murder despite such a recommendation following coronial inquests in 2001 and 2003.
An aerial shot of the home in Bayview, showing the police tent set up. Source: Ascent Digital
Four areas around the home and in the backyard near a clothesline and pool - which was there before she was believed murdered - are being examined.
These are areas that have been looked at before but not with the new technologies now available today.
"Previously when we conducted examinations here, there was a number of anomalies in the ground. They were inspected previously. We'll revisit them," Det Sup Cook said.
The mysterious disappearance of the wife and mother has been the subject of a highly popular podcast, Teacher's Pet, produced by The Australian.
"It's all about getting justice for Lyn," Det Sup Cook said.
An undated photo taken from a Facebook page dedicated to Lynette Dawson, a 33-year-old mother of two from Bayview in Sydney's north, Source: AAP
Lynette Dawson, 33, had two girls and was last seen alive in January 1982.
Mrs Dawson spoke to her mother on the evening of January 8, 1982, while she was at home in the Sydney suburb of Bayview with her husband, Christopher Dawson.
She made plans to lunch with her mother the following day at Northbridge Baths, but did not show up.
However, her husband, a former professional rugby league player, has long been a suspect.
Chris Dawson, who played for the Newtown Jets, has consistently denied any involvement in his wife's disappearance.
She was reported missing on February 18, 1982 by her husband.
After two coronial inquiries, in 2001 and 2003, no one was convicted of her suspected murder.
