The US may have brought down regular balloons than spy balloons this time around.
President Joe Biden recently revealed that the three unidentified flying aircraft found across North America weren't connected to the Chinese balloon incursion and were launched by private entities instead.
The incident follows the US' decision to shoot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon after it passed through sensitive missile defense sites, nuclear weapons infrastructure, and nuclear weapon sites.
Mystery Object Details
President Biden mentioned during a Feb. 16 press conference that he ordered the take-downs of three mystery objects found off the coast of northern Alaska, over the Yukon in northwestern Canada, and above Lake Huron on three separate occasions.
He added that he ordered the take-downs of these unidentified flying objects for two main reasons: they were flying low enough to interfere and even pose a risk to civilian air traffic. They could also have been gathering intelligence about sensitive US facilities.
You may remember that the US previously shot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon after it flew over much of the continental US before US fighter jets brought it down off the South Carolina coast on Feb. 4, per Space.com.
In this U.S. Navy handout, Sailors assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 prepare material recovered in the Atlantic Ocean from the alleged Chinese spty balloon for transport to federal agents at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek Feb. 10, 2023.
However, the intelligence community's assessment of the mystery objects revealed that the mystery objects were most likely balloons tied to private companies, recreation, or research institutions studying weather or conducting other scientific research.
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Additionally, these balloons weren't connected to the Chinese spy balloon incursion on Jan. 28, when it entered US airspace near Alaska, per CBS News. The balloons were not surveillance vehicles from any other country, either.
As such, President Biden wanted to clarify that the government didn't have any evidence that there had been a sudden increase in the number of objects in the sky. These balloons were only detected due to the steps the government took to increase and narrow its radars.
Although President Biden directed his team to return with "sharper rules" to better deal with unidentified objects in the sky going forward, he stressed that he wouldn't hesitate to give the order to bring down such objects if they present a threat to the safety and security of the American people.
The US military is working to recover pieces of the three down balloons along with the Chinese spy balloon they brought down on Feb. 4.
Criticism From Both Sides And New Measures
President Biden's move to bring down the three balloons was met with criticism due to his not knowing what the balloons were and what they were for before deciding to shoot them down, per the New York Times.
He also received criticism for not acting soon enough to intercept the alleged China spy balloon before it flew over sensitive locations.
In response, the Biden administration will be establishing an improved inventory of unmanned airborne objects above American airspace and implementing new measures to detect them, per CNN. It will also update rules and regulations for encounters with these objects in US airspace and establish common global norms for similar encounters.
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