To Shoot or Not to Shoot? What is the 'Spy Balloon' Over the US?

The US Department of Defense said on Thursday that it had communicated with Beijing "through multiple channels" over the balloon incident. On Friday, Beijing confirmed it was a Chinese aerostat, stressing, however, that it was a civilian balloon meant for scientific research.

Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder has confirmed that the US military is actively monitoring a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon flying over the northern part of America.

He added that "once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information." So what is the "spy balloon" the US has tracked and will the Pentagon shoot it down? Sputnik answers these and other questions.

When Did the 'Spy Balloon' Drama Started?

According to the US Department of Defense (DoD), the high-altitude balloon was spotted over Billings, Montana, on Wednesday. The floating object flew over the Aleutian Islands, through Canada, and into Montana. Right now, the balloon is reportedly “over the continental United States.”

A US media outlet cited an unnamed Pentagon source as claiming that Washington has "very high confidence" that the balloon had come from China to fly over sensitive sites to collect information. Montana – where the object was tracked – is home to one of the US' three nuclear missile silo fields, at Malmstrom Air Force Base.

HAPPENING NOW: Photo shows the massive Chinese spy balloon over Montana.

U.S. military is tracking the balloon. pic.twitter.com/RS52mQE9Og

— Antonio Sabato Jr (@AntonioSabatoJr) February 3, 2023

The Pentagon confirmed that the DoD had contacted the Chinese government "through multiple channels both here in D.C. and in Beijing," but did not elaborate on whether the Chinese admitted that launching the balloon was their handiwork.

Beijing's first reaction to the US claims was a call for calm, as it stated that it was looking into reports that a Chinese spy balloon had been flying in US airspace.

"China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international laws, and China has no intention of violating the territory and airspace of any sovereign country. As for the balloon, as I've mentioned just now, we are looking into and verifying the situation and hope that both sides can handle this together calmly and carefully," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning underscored.

Mao added that speculation on the topic of a "spy balloon" allegedly detected over the United States will not contribute to the resolution of the issue until all the details are established.

Later, Chinese authorities announced that the balloon originated in China, but it wasn't a surveillance aircraft as the US military initially suspected. In fact, it was a "civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological, purposes" that blew off course. The Chinese Foreign Ministry then expressed regret over the incident.

Meanwhile, the Canadian Department of National Defence reported a similar incident, saying that a high-altitude surveillance balloon had been detected. Canada did not elaborate on whether it was the same balloon detected in the US, nor did it mention China. Ottawa, however, stressed that it was being “actively tracked” by the North American Aerospace Defense Command, a US-Canadian military organization.

“Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace, including the monitoring of a potential second incident,” the Canadian Department of National Defence added.

Why is the US Unwilling to Shoot Down the Balloon?

The DoD stressed that the balloon does not pose a threat to civil aviation because of its altitude, and that a decision was finally made not to recommend taking it out kinetically, due to the risk to the safety and security of people on the ground from the possible debris field.

Military expert Vasily Kashin told Sputnik that the Pentagon is reluctant to shoot down the balloon because it is a difficult target for US air defenses.

According to him, the Americans are not sure whether it will technically be possible to down the balloon “in the right place, at the right time and with a predictable result.”

What Are Spy Balloons?

A spy balloon is a piece of surveillance equipment (such as camera) that is suspended beneath a balloon that floats above a given area, carried by wind currents. The equipment attached to the solar-powered balloons can include a radar.

Balloons typically operate between 24,000 meters (80,000 feet) and 37,000 meters (120,000 feet), well above the altitude where commercial airliners fly.

Spy balloons were first used during the American civil war in the 1860s, when Union men in hot air balloons tried to gather information about Confederate activity further away.

How Can a Spy Balloon Be Used?

Russian aeronautics expert Denis Yefemov told Sputnik that the balloon spotted over Montana usually flies at an altitude of up to 35,000 meters (114,000 feet) and is capable of operating on solar panels while in the air for more than a year.

“Such balloons fly where the wind blows. They cannot fly against the wind, but due to changes in altitude, they can catch the flows that are necessary to move,” he said, adding that only a manufacturer is in the know on the balloon had been equipped.

Yefremov explained that such objects are mainly launched for scientific purposes, but added that reconnaissance stratospheric balloons "certainly exist and they have their own advantages."

"They are in many ways better than satellites. They fly lower, have a more detailed view, and are cheaper. On top of that, launching them is a quicker process," he noted.

Hu Xijin, the former editor-in-chief of a Chinese media outlet, for his part described the incident with the balloon as "a very strange story", which he said "quickly became popular in the US."

"The origin and purpose of this balloon have yet to be determined, but it has already become a great tool for US politicians to incite anti-Chinese hatred," Hu argued.

Notably, the incident comes as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing later this week. It makes Blinken the first US secretary of state to sit down with the Chinese leader in almost six years and the first of President Joe Biden’s cabinet secretaries to visit China.