By Patricia Zengerle
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – An unprecedented spate of mysterious flying objects over North America – including a Chinese spy balloon shot down on February 4 after flying over much of the United States – has stunned Americans and Canadians, sparked political outrage and scores of People excited national security issues.
Here’s what we know – and don’t know – about the objects:
WHAT ARE THE OBJECTS?
The first of the four objects was a 60-meter-tall aerial intruder that sparked the frenzy when it was spotted two weeks ago. It has been identified by US officials as a balloon used by China to spy on the United States.
Beijing denies the balloon was used for surveillance, saying it was a civilian research vessel.
The other three remain officially unidentified as crews work to recover and identify debris.
They include an object the size of a small car that was shot down over sea ice near Dead Horse, Alaska, on Friday, another object similar in shape but smaller than the Chinese spy balloon that was dropped over Canada’s Yukon on Saturday and an octagonal object shot down over Canada’s Yukon Lake Huron on Sunday.
WHERE DO YOU COME FROM?
US officials have not yet announced the origin of the devices. On Sunday, the US Air Force general, who oversees North American airspace, said he would not rule out extraterrestrials or other explanations, although another US official later said there was no evidence extraterrestrials were involved.
WHY DO WE SEE SO MANY NOW?
The US military adjusted its radar to find slower-flying objects at different altitudes after the first balloon was spotted, and the government announced that several Chinese spy balloons had visited the United States undetected in recent years.
US officials said the US North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) adjusted the filters and algorithms it uses to examine the radar data to make it sensitive enough to detect smaller objects, their ability to be airborne to stay and move with the wind that confused US officials.
HOW DID THE MILITARY WITHDRAW THEM?
On February 4, an F-22 fighter jet shot down the first balloon over the Atlantic off South Carolina. F-22s also shot down the objects over Alaska on Friday and over Canada on Saturday. The device over Lake Huron was blown out of the sky by an F-16 on Sunday.
All four were hit by Sidewinder missiles costing hundreds of thousands of dollars each.
The military considered using weapons, but this was deemed too difficult given the small targets. Guns would also be more dangerous to the pilot, as debris can more easily hit an aircraft firing at close range than one firing a missile from afar.
WHAT DANGER ARE THE OBJECTS?
The objects, particularly those spotted near military installations, have fueled fears of surveillance by US opponents and tensions between the United States and China, both of which accuse the other of violating sovereign airspace.
Some only a few at altitudes where they could pose a threat to civilian aircraft. The incidents have led to repeated airspace closures to commercial aircraft to avoid potential collisions between fighter jets and civilian aircraft.
WILL THE UNITED STATES SEND BALLOONS OVER CHINA?
China has accused Washington of sending high-altitude balloons over its airspace without authorization more than 10 times since early 2022.
US officials denied the allegation.
WHAT ABOUT OTHER COUNTRIES?
The United States accuses China of conducting a high-altitude intelligence surveillance balloon program that has violated the sovereignty of more than 40 countries on five continents.
Washington said another Chinese balloon has been sighted over Latin America. US close ally Britain said it would review its security after the US-China balloon incident.
(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
