Breaking News... That Chinese Spy Balloon. Thoughts?

WhatInThe said:
A second ballon spotted over Latin America per the Pentagon
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Another Lawnchair Larry? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawnchair_Larry_flight

On July 2, 1982, Larry Walters (April 19, 1949 – October 6, 1993) made a 45-minute flight in a homemade aerostat made of an ordinary patio chair and 45 helium-filled weather balloons. The aircraft rose to an altitude of about 16,000 feet (4,900 m), drifted from the point of liftoff in San Pedro, California, and entered controlled airspace near Long Beach Airport. During the landing, the aircraft became entangled in power lines, but Walters was able to climb down safely. The flight attracted worldwide media attention and inspired a movie and imitators.

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It is obvious China may have launched this balloon just to drive everyone in the U.S. into a self destructive paranoid frenzy. Our country is well known to already be a total psychological basket case. We clearly have a critical mass of hypersensitive schizoid delusional crazy people which, when mixed in with the 2nd amendment, may result in a chain reaction, a circular firing squad as it were. I don't give a **** about the balloon. But the way people react to it scares the shit out of me!
 
Mike said:
Is it too big to hook by using a helicopter, there
are some really big ones, they could catch it I bet.

Mike.
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Too high for a helicopter — 50,000 feet. But we could have brought it down when it crossed the border from Canada into Montana. Just an uneducated guess, but maybe we assumed that bringing it down would give China an excuse to down one or more of our satellites or a spy plane off its coast? At any rate ignoring this insult to our airspace doesn‘t reflect well on our resolve to fight China in the defense of Taiwan. Maybe that is what this incursion is about.
 
Pepper said:
Secretary of State Blinken cancelled his diplomatic mission this weekend to China because of balloon. Is that the right move? I don't know.
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Maybe they just need him at home until the balloon issue is solved. But the CCP will probably tell their people Blinken cancelled because he's scared...Xi needs the applause right now.
 
Murrmurr said:
Not an accident but it's possible the thing drifted off its true course. China doesn't care about where their space stuff drifts or falls.

I'm pretty sure the CCP has as much right to international airspace as any nation, but they do not believe laws created by the west apply to them at all. They create their own laws. They believe that air and oceans have no boundaries, or that none of it's off-limits for them, anyway.

China doesn't want to merge with Russia. The CCP does not want to share power. And I think the Russian Communist Party's time is limited. Putin's time is, anyway. Honestly, Xi hates Putin's aggressive actions, he really does. He doesn't see any necessity for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and he doesn't like the old Soviet tactics they use. Also, Xi does not want to tangle with the west. He knows our military might and our military technology and experience surpasses China's.

The west still wants a good relationship with China, but their understanding of eastern thinking is limited. China understands the east and west are interdependent, and that their options are limited. The CCP has been trying to partner with India and Africa, but that's not going well...both India and African leaders are finding out the CCP is not a solid, trustworthy partner, and that loans from the CCP have very harsh, costly terms and conditions. Vietnam learned that lesson long ago.
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International Airspace? Is that the joke of the day? Any airspace above a country is not international airspace.

I don't know where all this came from, but there is a hidden agenda in here that only the Chinese know about. I heard another good one yesterday. The USAF was considering taking down the balloon, but they were afraid the damage it would have caused to "maybe" people and property. The damn thing passed over Wyoming. The worse thing that could have happened there was maybe an elk would have been killed.

We will pay a price for allowing this "weather" balloon to pass over us. Now is not the time to be naïve. Now's the time to show some stones and do what needs to be done. I don't care what kind of balloon it is. It has no business passing over our "International Airspace."
 
Been There said:
International Airspace? Is that the joke of the day? Any airspace above a country is not international airspace.

I don't know where all this came from, but there is a hidden agenda in here that only the Chinese know about. I heard another good one yesterday. The USAF was considering taking down the balloon, but they were afraid the damage it would have caused to "maybe" people and property. The damn thing passed over Wyoming. The worse thing that could have happened there was maybe an elk would have been killed.

We will pay a price for allowing this "weather" balloon to pass over us. Now is not the time to be naïve. Now's the time to show some stones and do what needs to be done. I don't care what kind of balloon it is. It has no business passing over our "International Airspace."
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I wasn't talking about our airspace. My point was that China doesn't recognize international airspace or waters.
 
CallMeKate said:
Any thoughts on the balloon the U.S. is now tracking over the mainland? And the prediction I've heard of war with China by 2025... possible, or blowing smoke? Have things like this always been "flying over" and this one has made the breaking headlines for some reason? Educate me... I love learning things but I know little about this topic.
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Wow, haven't heard of that. Hope it doesn't have some kind of airborne diseases blown into it waiting for someone to shoot it down releasing it into the atmosphere. :oops:
I remember it was on the news where people were receiving mysterious packets of seeds in the mail that they never ordered and it had Chinese writing on the packages. They were telling people not to plant the seeds but turn them in to some place I can't remember.

 
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Jamala said:
It's a mystery why China with all its advanced satellites would launch a spy balloon. Such an old fashioned action.
I believe they are just toying with the US, reminding them they are around.
Nothing to worry about in IMHO
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Closer to the ground = better imagery
Satellites cannot intercept radio signals
There's also the ability to accurately measure and plot air currents
Airships are far better at ground-penetrating radar than satallites
And I'm sure there are other advantages
 
Been There said:
International Airspace? Is that the joke of the day? Any airspace above a country is not international airspace.

I don't know where all this came from, but there is a hidden agenda in here that only the Chinese know about. I heard another good one yesterday. The USAF was considering taking down the balloon, but they were afraid the damage it would have caused to "maybe" people and property. The damn thing passed over Wyoming. The worse thing that could have happened there was maybe an elk would have been killed.

We will pay a price for allowing this "weather" balloon to pass over us. Now is not the time to be naïve. Now's the time to show some stones and do what needs to be done. I don't care what kind of balloon it is. It has no business passing over our "International Airspace."
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Hey! Billings, Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota are my old stomping grounds! Offended! (just kidding, not offended)
I would think those Montana cowboys would have taken it down though! They are not wimps, nor is the USAF.

"Damage" to what's below is a bogus reason for not shooting it down IMO. Our government has other reasons; FEAR comes to mind.
Politics also comes to mind. Wait until it's over DC and watch the panic!

The Communist Chinese government is NOT our ally! This is not a friendly mistake. Why didn't we know about it when it was over Alaska?
and, What was the explosion over Billings? Oh, I think we will let it leave our airspace. We coddle China!
 
Gaer said:
Hey! Billings, Montana, Wyoming and North Dakota are my old stomping grounds! Offended! (just kidding, not offended)
I would think those Montana cowboys would have taken it down though! They are not wimps, nor is the USAF.

"Damage" to what's below is a bogus reason for not shooting it down IMO. Our government has other reasons; FEAR comes to mind.
Politics also comes to mind. Wait until it's over DC and watch the panic!

The Communist Chinese government is NOT our ally! This is not a friendly mistake. Why didn't we know about it when it was over Alaska?
and, What was the explosion over Billings? Oh, I think we will let it leave our airspace. We coddle China!
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What if it's booby-trapped? And isn't airship fuel highly explosive?

To me it just makes more sense to observe it for a while, and keep it where it's at or at least keep it from leaving our borders. Then bring it down slowly on one of the Great Lakes or maybe somewhere off the east coast and capture it.
 
Gaer said:
... Wait until it's over DC and watch the panic!

... I think we will let it leave our airspace. We coddle China!
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Our military planes can actually maneuver it. They won't let it near DC, nor any major city, infrastructure, or military base.

I'm sure we won't let it leave our airspace.

I predict our military will capture it. I'm 100% certain they've decided it's spying ...even if it isn't. But it is.
 

The reaction of the U.S.A. to this balloon may be what is important to the chinese?​

There are ways to tell what is inside of it. Spectroscopy is one option.​

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Light_dispersion_conceptual.gif​

 
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It's common knowledge that Russian submarines are patrolling the British coast and have been for some years. There was an incident when a whole ship's crew drowned because they called us for help but the Russians refused to admit that they had a sub in the area.
Therefore it's surely no surprise that the Chinese are spying on the US as well as the UK. They have been doing it by satellite, now they are just being a bit more obvious about it.
Did it drop leaflets by any chance....informing the public, 'This time it's just paper...next time...!'
 
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