How was the balloon discovered?
US defense sources state that the Biden administration was informed about the balloon even before it entered US airspace at the beginning of the week. Foreign Minister Antony Blinken is said to have been in contact with a high-ranking Chinese representative on Wednesday, but what was said is unclear.
The Pentagon went public with the incident on Thursday. Defense forces spokesperson Patrick Ryder then announced that the balloon posed neither a military nor a physical threat to people on the ground. The balloon must not be armed.
According to the US, it is a Chinese surveillance balloon with the purpose of gathering information. Among other things, the balloon has been seen over Montana where there is a military base with nuclear weapons.
What does China say?
China initially did not comment on the incident. On Friday, the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that it is a civilian craft that collects data for research purposes, mainly meteorological data. In its statement, China said the balloon had limited controllability and that it “deviated far from the planned course” due to winds.
Is it possible to shoot down the balloon?
The US has currently chosen not to launch the balloon. According to the Pentagon, a shooting down could pose a danger to people on the ground. As the balloon is at a high altitude, around 18,000 metres, it is difficult to assess in advance the extent of the impact. However, Jim Himes, Democratic member of the House of Representatives, believes that it may be valuable to capture the balloon in order to study it more closely.
William Kim, a specialist in this type of balloon at the think tank Marathon Initiative, believes that shooting down this type of balloon is easier said than done, partly because of its size.
— Helium is used in these balloons. It’s not the Hindenburg (which was filled with hydrogen gas), you can’t just shoot at it and it burns up, he told AFP.
— If you make a hole in it, it will just leak out slowly, says Kim.
Has something similar happened before?
The Pentagon states that this is not the first time balloons have been observed. Similar incidents have occurred in recent years, according to Patrick Ryder, a spokesperson for the United States Defense Force.
According to officials in the United States, at least two similar events took place during the presidency of Donald Trump. The incidents were never made public.
On the night of Saturday, the Pentagon announced that it had discovered another Chinese balloon, but this time somewhere over Latin America. Where exactly is not known. The balloon is not considered to be heading for the United States.