Several high-altitude airspace security events were reported in February 2023, initially over North America, then over Latin America, China, and Eastern Europe.
North American sightings
3000km 2,000miles
Feb 4: Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Feb 12: Lake Huron
Feb 11: Yukon, Canada
Feb 10: Deadhorse, Alaska
Approximate location where objects were shot down over North America
After the
sightings of a Chinese balloon in 2023 (later shot down off the coast of
South Carolina), the U.S. began more closely scrutinizing its airspace at high altitudes, including by radar enhancements that allowed the U.S. to better categorize and track slower-moving objects.[1][2] General
Glen VanHerck, the commander of
NORAD, said that in 2021, up to 98% of raw radar data was not routinely analyzed, because the military aimed to filter out radio signal emanating from flocks of birds or weather balloons (as opposed to potential threats). VanHerck said that the U.S. adjustments to radar monitoring in 2023, after the Chinese balloon intrusion, gave the U.S. "better fidelity on seeing smaller objects."[2] The U.S. radar adjustments and increased vigilance increased the detection of objects.[1][2][3] It remains unknown when state-actor balloon incursions had begun.[4]
On February 14, after unidentified high-altitude objects had been detected and shot down over northern Alaska, Yukon, and Lake Huron, White House spokesman
John Kirby said that the
U.S. Intelligence Community "will not dismiss as a possibility that these could be balloons that were simply tied to commercial or research entities and therefore benign. That very well could be, or could emerge, as a leading explanation here."[2] The downing of the Yukon object, on February 11, 2023, marked the first deployment of NORAD to down an aerial object within the 64-year history of the US-Canadian aerospace warning and air sovereignty organization.[5] The objects shot down over northern Alaska, Yukon, and Lake Huron were all smaller than the Chinese balloon shot down over South Carolina.[6] A report by
The Guardian on 17 February suggested that one of the objects "may have been amateur hobbyists’ $12 balloon."[7]
When asked about possible
extraterrestrial origin of the three objects downed over North America between February 9–12, General VanHerck said he personally had not "ruled out anything", but he deferred to U.S. intelligence experts.[8]
Recovery operations
Since several of the objects were downed in relatively inaccessible locations, ranging from sea ice off the Arctic Ocean coast of Alaska to remote alpine terrain in Yukon and deep US-Canada boundary waters in the middle of Lake Huron, recovery efforts have required considerable amounts of coordination and care.[9][10][11]
On February 16, 2023 at about 11 a.m., a suspected weather balloon believed to have originated in China was discovered at a shooting range on
Dongyin, Lienchiang, Taiwan.[13]
On February 18, 2023, it was reported that the searches for the Alaska, Yukon and Lake Huron objects had all been abandoned.[14]
A Chinese high-altitude surveillance balloon transited Canadian and U.S. airspace before being shot down off the coast of
South Carolina by the
U.S. Air Force on February 4.
A Chinese high-altitude balloon flew over Costa Rica, Colombia, and Venezuela. A spokesperson for the Chinese government confirmed the balloon was theirs and said that it was used for "flight tests" and was blown off-course.
A high-altitude object entered U.S. airspace on February 9 and was shot down over the
Beaufort Sea by the U.S. Air Force. The
Department of Defense said it was the size of a small car and flying northeast at approximately 40,000 feet (12,000 m), posing a risk to civilian flight.
An octagonal object with strings hanging from it was detected over northern Montana,
Wisconsin, and the
Upper Peninsula of Michigan at 20,000 feet (6,100 m).
Airspace was temporarily closed in the
Lake Huron area, where the object was shot down by the US Air Force and National Guard, falling into Canadian waters.
Chinese authorities said they detected an unidentified object over the
Yellow Sea, in waters near
Qingdao, and were planning to shoot it down due to proximity to
Jianggezhuang, a major
PLA naval base.
Shijiazhuang Airport, serving
Hebei's provincial capital, was shuttered for two hours due to local airspace "being occupied" by an unidentified flying object. Government sources later stated that the object was a balloon but provided no further follow-up, leading to a drop in domestic Chinese stocks.
American air traffic control from the
Oakland Air Route Traffic Control Center reported that a large white balloon had been reported to be flying at an altitude of roughly 40,000 to 50,000 feet (12,000 to 15,000 m) over the Pacific Ocean, about 594 miles (956 km) northeast of
Honolulu,
United States.