A Chinese spy balloon that recently crossed over the US has been found to be capable of transmitting information back to Beijing in real-time, according to a source familiar with the matter. The balloon was able to capture imagery and collect signals intelligence from US military sites, although it's unclear whether any sensitive information was compromised.
The balloon first entered US airspace over Alaska in late January before passing through Canada and into Montana, where it hovered for several days, prompting concerns that it may have been trying to surveil sensitive military sites such as Malmstrom Air Force Base. However, it was eventually shot down off the East Coast on February 4.
While the Chinese government initially claimed the balloon was a weather balloon that had strayed off course, intelligence officials believe that China did maintain some level of control over the device and used its position to loiter over sensitive sites and collect intelligence. The US has been assessing whether any critical information was gathered by the balloon that may not have been previously known.
Despite this, the US government does not appear to be overly concerned about what information the balloon may have gathered, as it is largely seen as similar to the signals intelligence capabilities of Chinese satellites orbiting over similar locations. The US has a program in place to track these types of balloons and has developed methods to detect and disrupt them.
The incident has further escalated tensions between the US and China, including the postponement of a diplomatic visit by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China. The surveillance program using balloons is believed to be run out of the Chinese province of Hainan and has conducted at least two dozen missions over five continents in recent years.
It's worth noting that roughly half a dozen of these flights have been within US airspace, although not necessarily over US territory, according to one official familiar with the intelligence. The US is still examining the balloon, but officials have managed to glean some information about how the device worked, including the algorithms used for its software and how it was powered and designed.
As the investigation continues, questions remain about whether any critical information was gathered by the balloon that may not have been previously known.
The balloon first entered US airspace over Alaska in late January before passing through Canada and into Montana, where it hovered for several days, prompting concerns that it may have been trying to surveil sensitive military sites such as Malmstrom Air Force Base. However, it was eventually shot down off the East Coast on February 4.
While the Chinese government initially claimed the balloon was a weather balloon that had strayed off course, intelligence officials believe that China did maintain some level of control over the device and used its position to loiter over sensitive sites and collect intelligence. The US has been assessing whether any critical information was gathered by the balloon that may not have been previously known.
Despite this, the US government does not appear to be overly concerned about what information the balloon may have gathered, as it is largely seen as similar to the signals intelligence capabilities of Chinese satellites orbiting over similar locations. The US has a program in place to track these types of balloons and has developed methods to detect and disrupt them.
The incident has further escalated tensions between the US and China, including the postponement of a diplomatic visit by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China. The surveillance program using balloons is believed to be run out of the Chinese province of Hainan and has conducted at least two dozen missions over five continents in recent years.
It's worth noting that roughly half a dozen of these flights have been within US airspace, although not necessarily over US territory, according to one official familiar with the intelligence. The US is still examining the balloon, but officials have managed to glean some information about how the device worked, including the algorithms used for its software and how it was powered and designed.
As the investigation continues, questions remain about whether any critical information was gathered by the balloon that may not have been previously known.
. Like, we all knew they were getting sneaky with their satellites and stuff, but balloons? That's just wild 
. And to think it was just hovering over our military bases in Alaska, waiting to scoop up some juicy intel... I'm glad the US had its radar on 
. But at the same time, I gotta wonder if we're being a bit too chill about this whole thing 
. Like, shouldn't we be more concerned that China's basically got a surveillance program that's been flying around our neck of the woods? 
Anyway, gotta keep an eye on this one...
China's been using these spy balloons for years & we're just now catching on? 
... it's like, how can you not have some kind of security protocol in place? 
...
I mean, come on, a spy balloon just floating around? That's so obvious! 
How could they not know it was surveillance equipment? 
So why are we getting all worked up about a balloon? 
. One minute I'm saying China is being super sneaky and the next I'm thinking they're just being really chill with their surveillance program 
. It's not just about some one-off balloon, it's a whole program of surveillance that's been going on.
And how are we supposed to prevent this from happening again? The fact that China can basically just fly over our airspace and spy on us is a huge concern for national security 
.
. I mean, when China does this, it's a huge deal, and now that the US is doing it too... what's the difference? 
. Like, can't we just talk things out instead of resorting to spy games 
? I guess not when you're dealing with nations that seem more interested in one-upping each other than actually finding common ground 
.
but for real, this is some major drama rn. us govnt doesnt seem too concerned about the info that mighta been gathered but im like "wait a minute" 
And the fact that they're just kinda hanging out above US military sites without any real explanation is sketchy.
And what about the environment? Are we really going to keep launching all these balloons and satellites into orbit without thinking about the impact on our planet? 
It's not like we haven't seen this before... remember when Russia did that thing with their spy planes? 
maybe it's time for some real diplomatic efforts to calm things down between the US and China? less drama, more cooperation 
? And what's with the secrecy around it? Can't they just admit it's spying?
. I mean what if they did gather some sensitive info? We need to know what we're dealing with here 
I'm all for a little friendly competition, but not when it comes to national security 
. Let's keep our eyes peeled for more updates on this one 
And to think it was just floating around over our bases in Montana, collecting intel without us even knowing... 
. But I'm sure there are still some pretty important details that didn't get leaked out of this incident... and I'm curious to see what actually happens next 
.
. And honestly, I'm both fascinated and a little scared by all this spy game stuff 
. That's some serious security breach right there... and now we're still figuring out what kind of info might've been gathered 
.
.
like, 24/7 
malmstrom air force base is a biggie 
for like 10 hours 
like, it's not new news 