# The Pentagon is tracking a Chinese spy balloon **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 3, 2023, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228 "2023-02-03T01:32:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 21
**Author:** ![eburacum45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eburacum45/32/8690_2.png) [@eburacum45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eburacum45)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/402 "2023-02-06T22:47:36Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > Let out gas to descend / maintain altitude as balloon heats (sunlight) > Let out ballast to ascend / maintain altitude as balloon cools (night time). In manned gas balloons, ballast is either sand or water (over populated areas) That would work. In either case the balloon is using up resources, which means that it could only manoeuvre until those resources are exhausted. On the other hand the large solar array on the payload could supply power almost indefinitely (in theory). ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/403 "2023-02-06T22:56:44Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Speaking as a former electronic warfare professional, this sounds like it might be PR or a degree of deliberate obfuscation. My apologies. I should have prefaced the word “jamming”. I couldn’t find a quote. That’s my word. I’m not sure how they worded it but the implication was that it was rendered incapable of it’s mission. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/404 "2023-02-06T23:15:33Z")
Ultimately it was. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/405 "2023-02-06T23:19:54Z")
> [@eburacum45](#): > > That would work. In either case the balloon is using up resources, which means that it could only manoeuvre until those resources are exhausted. In principle (if you have power), you can pump lift gas into high-pressure storage tanks, instead of just venting it. But in practice, it’s usually easier to just design a balloon with enough consumables to last for its intended mission. And even with pumping into storage tanks, lift gas will still effectively be a consumable, because some amount of leakage is inevitable. ---
**Author:** ![Ssounder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@Ssounder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ssounder)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/406 "2023-02-06T23:24:10Z")
Yes. They found gaps in our continental air defense. [Pentagon Admits It Failed To Spot 3 Chinese Spy Balloons During Trump’s Term](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/pentagon-admits-it-failed-to-spot-3-chinese-spy-balloons-during-trump-s-term/ar-AA17aUuE) This route wasn’t a gap. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/407 "2023-02-06T23:24:29Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Maybe it really was just a weather balloon. It was a substantial setup. [The New York Times](https://nypost.com/2023/02/06/chinese-spy-balloon-was-200ft-tall/) - “The balloon assessment was up to 200 feet tall for the actual balloon,” he told reporters during a press briefing. - “Of the payload itself, I would categorize that as a jet-airliner type of size, maybe a regional jet such as a ERJ [Embraer Regional Jet] or something like that. [It] probably weighed in excess of a couple thousand pounds.” ---
**Author:** ![Ssounder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@Ssounder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ssounder)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/408 "2023-02-06T23:41:37Z")
Quick quote for those that don’t click links: _Gen. Glen VanHerck, commander of US Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command, told reporters a “ **domain awareness gap** ” led to the Pentagon’s failure to detect the “threats” during Trump’s tenure, but the military later learned about the balloons via intelligence-gathering operations “from additional means.”_ My bold. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/409 "2023-02-06T23:46:29Z")
I didn’t realize how big the payload was. This was tracked crossing over Japan on it’s way to Alaska. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/410 "2023-02-06T23:47:16Z")
> [@Ssounder](#): > > … a “ **domain awareness gap** ” … That’s Mil-Speak for: > We were guarding the front door so they cleverly slipped in the back door. Who could have predicted such a trick? Surely not us. ---
**Author:** ![Ssounder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@Ssounder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ssounder)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/411 "2023-02-06T23:50:38Z")
Agreed, but my guess is now we’ll close that gap. In the era of drone warfare, that’s a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/412 "2023-02-07T00:03:44Z")
> [@eburacum45](#): > > Oh dear. Is he speaking English? You must never have sat through talks from DoD people. He’s quite comprehensible compared to many I’ve heard. > [@Chronos](#): > > Oh, it’s certainly a surveillance balloon. I think everyone agrees on that. The question is just what it’s surveying. And a balloon is a lot better suited to surveying upper atmosphere temperature, pressure, windspeeds, and the like, than to surveying sensitive national secrets. Exactly what information about the upper atmosphere isn’t available from NOAA? Plus, if it really came from a civilian agency, maybe they could have informed us that their gigantic and expensive balloon had gone off course? In any case if the Chinese government say it’s a weather balloon, it definitely isn’t. Those people make Trump look like Abe Lincoln. Though Trump, in denying it ever happened during his administration, is trying to catch up. I’m interested if the Chinese try to make up a company to take the blame, or if they don’t even care enough to make the effort. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/413 "2023-02-07T00:10:04Z")
The People’s Wayward Balloon Factory Number 12 would like to express a most sincere apology for their product’s inadvertent visit to your fine country. However we also regret to inform you that any warrantee returns require the complete intact envelope and all attached accessories. ---
**Author:** ![EastUmpqua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eastumpqua/32/6025_2.png) [@EastUmpqua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EastUmpqua)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/414 "2023-02-07T00:56:01Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > The Goodyear Blimp operates fairly close to the ground, where windspeeds are low, Wind speeds are less in the lower atmosphere, but the air is much more dense, and more chaotic due to surface interaction. Operating an airship is more difficult near the surface (Hindenburg). They knew close enough where it would go when they launched it. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/415 "2023-02-07T01:02:02Z")
> [@Ssounder](#): > > Yes. > They found gaps in our continental air defense. > [Pentagon Admits It Failed To Spot 3 Chinese Spy Balloons During Trump’s Term](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/pentagon-admits-it-failed-to-spot-3-chinese-spy-balloons-during-trump-s-term/ar-AA17aUuE) > This route wasn’t a gap. But of course, Fox News blames Biden. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/416 "2023-02-07T01:06:18Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > “Of the payload itself, I would categorize that as a jet-airliner type of size, maybe a regional jet such as a ERJ [Embraer Regional Jet] or something like that. [It] probably weighed in excess of a couple thousand pounds.” TIL that my car weighs twice as much as regional airliner. ---
**Author:** ![Ssounder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@Ssounder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ssounder)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/417 "2023-02-07T01:06:41Z")
I don’t know why we haven’t charged Alex Murdoch for being a foreign agent… ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/418 "2023-02-07T01:59:07Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > TIL that my car weighs twice as much as regional airliner. A small RJ weighs 25,000 lbs empty and 45,000 lbs fully loaded. A really big one is more like 65,000 lbs empty and 115,000 lbs fully loaded. So anywhere between 10 and 50 times heavier than a typical passenger car. To be sure, free balloon spy hardware would be both big and very un-dense = light. It’s probably mostly antennas and solar cells. So it could in fact be a shape composed of multiple 50-foot “wings” akin to an RJ for whatever purposes yet weigh only 10K lbs. Said another way, I think what the General meant to say was smarter than what he really said. Which was stupid. Misleading and stupid. 😉 But at least it was bureaucratic and ponderous. ---
**Author:** ![Ssounder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@Ssounder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ssounder)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/419 "2023-02-07T02:14:21Z")
Suffice it to say, sometimes spokespersons get in over their head. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/420 "2023-02-07T02:14:35Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > TIL that my car weighs twice as much as regional airliner. The jet reference was a comparison of it’s size. The weight was probably based on the size of the balloon lifting it. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/421 "2023-02-07T02:23:44Z")
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