Where is the Balloon?

Arjun

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There's a certain altitude at which it is deemed International Space
 

Mike A.

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It's already in North Carolina? That was quick.
 

Mike A.

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Maybe literally in the Atlantic... Reports now that they popped it.
 

garycrist

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Make sure all the cows have escaped before closing the gate!
And as usual, the Democrats B.S.
If we had more time.
if we had more money.
if you just believed.
If we knew earlier.
BLA BLA BLA
 

trapper

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CCP said something like oops our balloon is out of control and its not a spy ballon. Crazy how an out of control balloon magically hovers over high value military assets and only when the public pressure is too much for admin to handle do they say they are going to take care of it as the balloon high tails it to international airspace. admin is Day late and a dollar short.
 

trapper

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after watching the shoot down video it looks like the missile hit the payload and not the balloon. what would be the point of shooting if down govt is not interested in recovering the payload. It was all for show. This is a great weekend to watch both the original and new version of Red Dawn.. Wolverines. just kidding about the movie have a great weekend.
 

wrapter

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Press release : An F-22 Raptor from the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley Air Force Base fired a single AIM-9X Sidewinder missile that downed the balloon from an altitude of 58,000 feet. The balloon was as high as 65,000 feet.
 

SpacemanSpiff

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after watching the shoot down video it looks like the missile hit the payload and not the balloon. what would be the point of shooting if down govt is not interested in recovering the payload. It was all for show. This is a great weekend to watch both the original and new version of Red Dawn.. Wolverines. just kidding about the movie have a great weekend.
Right now I’ve got a few words for some of our brothers and sisters in the occupied zone:
“The chair is against the wall, the chair is against the wall“, “John has a long mustache, John has a long mustache”.
 

TonyR

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Michael Diehl

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Here's the "politics free" analysis of the Chinese Balloon:
First acquisition of the balloon most probably over Alaska (look up the "Track"). At which point I'm certain that both high resolution imaging and certain antenna systems (ground based and satellite) had "eyes" on it.
The Canadians (and their "Agencies") would have tracked it over Canada and when it crossed over our northern border more and more "Eyes" were on it. Could we have "shot it down" as soon as it crossed into Montana...Yes, but here's why we didn't, and NO it was not because of a hazard to anything on the ground, particularly in that area in Montana.
That sort of Surveillance "payload" very probably is not relying on storing data onboard, but was transmitting as it went. Allowing it to reach the Coast gave us time to collect the data it was transmitting (what better way to see what it was seeing...). "Splashing it" just off the coast would keep more of the payload hardware at least semi-intact, which I would venture is now on its way to Langley or perhaps the NRO...
 

davej

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I agree 100% that it was/is exactly...a test.
You don't know how much I wish Trump was in the WH, his responses to all offshore and home events that have been been occuring since 1/20/21 would have led to them NOT trying such a stunt.
LOL. Trump would have called Putin on the phone and asked him what to do.
 
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