3 quick facts about a Chinese hot air balloon that flew over the US

The US is tracking a suspected Chinese reconnaissance balloon that was seen flying over the north and center of the US. It was spotted on February 2 over Montana and was heading for the US center on February 3.

February 2 Tweet an account that posts news content on Twitter says the hot air balloon seen over Billings, Montana was the size of three buses. The hot air balloon video has over 5 million views.

The Reddit post also showed the alleged trajectory of the Chinese “spy ball”.

CHECK that viewers Angie and Barbara wrote to us and asked us about the hot air balloon. Here’s what we know so far.

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1. The Pentagon says the balloon was not shot down because it poses no threat.

Current And former American politicians have called for the balloon to be knocked out of the sky.

But during a press conference on February 3, Pentagon spokesman Brig. General Pat Ryder said that if the balloon was shot down by officials, debris from the balloon could injure people on the ground and cause property damage. As of February 3, the balloon was flying at 60,000 feet, which is above commercial airspace.

Ryder said the balloon poses no military or physical threat to people on the ground. NORAD, which follows the balloon, agreed.

Asked if the balloon would be shot down as it passed over the ocean and exited U.S. airspace, Ryder said: “Right now we are assessing that there is no threat — physical or military — to people on the ground. So we keep watching, you know, and we’ll just stop there.”

2 China Confirmed It Was Their Balloon, But Denied It Was For Spying

On Feb. 2, a senior Pentagon Defense Department official told reporters that the balloon flew over “confidential” military installations to collect information. However, the People’s Republic of China denied these accusations.

In a Chinese foreign ministry statement, the Chinese government confirmed ownership of the balloon, but said it was being used for “research, mainly meteorological, purposes.”

“Under the influence of westerly winds and with limited self-management capabilities, the airship deviated far from the planned course. The Chinese side regrets the inadvertent entry of the airship into US airspace due to force majeure [unforeseeable circumstances]. The Chinese side will continue to communicate with the American side and properly handle this unexpected situation caused by force majeure,” the statement said.

Asked about China’s claim that the balloon is a weather balloon and not a spy balloon, Ryder said the US government is aware of the claim.

“The thing is, we know it’s an observer ball, and I can’t be more precise. And we know that the balloon violated US airspace and international law, which is unacceptable. And so we passed it on directly to the PRC at several levels,” Ryder said at a press conference on February 3.

Weather experts told the Associated Press that China’s claim that the balloon was off course was plausible.

3. The Pentagon says this is not the first such balloon flight over the US.

A senior Pentagon Defense Department official said “balloons of this type” have flown over the US “several times over the past few years,” including before the Biden administration.

What makes this balloon different is how long it stays above US airspace.

“It looks like it hangs for a long period of time this time, more persistently than on previous occasions. So that will be one of the differentiating factors,” a defense ministry spokesman told reporters.

During a Feb. 3 press conference, Ryder told reporters that the cases of these other balloons flying into US airspace are classified.

“I can’t provide this other than that I can confirm that there have been other incidents where balloons approached or crossed US territory,” Ryder said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.