# 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:** 3
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/41 "2023-02-03T16:15:11Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Why didn’t we hear anything about this until the balloon was over Montana? Shouldn’t this have triggered some sort of flag as soon as it entered US airspace? AIUI, the Pentagon has known about it since Monday but we’re only hearing about it now because citizens on the ground finally noticed it. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/42 "2023-02-03T17:16:27Z")
That and it was probably over Canada before then, and we wouldn’t have cared until it came south of the border. But, why didn’t Canada tell us about it? ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/43 "2023-02-03T17:20:40Z")
Probably because no one in Canada saw it (except NORAD, I’m sure). Canada is pretty sparsely populated out west. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/44 "2023-02-03T17:40:15Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > these balloons don’t just pop and plummet when they’re shot down Why do you have to shoot down the entire balloon? The flexible gas bag is indeed hard to destroy. But the interesting part of it is not the gas bag–it’s the camera or whatever instruments it carries, which presumably are located in a rigid box on the bottom of the balloon . And that’s a target which I’m guessing could be hit and destroyed by a missile fired from a US Air Force plane . ---
**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 3, 2023, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/45 "2023-02-03T17:43:47Z")
No manned interceptor can get closer than 6 _miles_ below the altitude of the balloon. And since you can’t easily fire straight up, and especially not at your own max altitude, the minimum slant range to the target at launch will be more like 10-12 miles, maybe more like 20. Any interceptor or missile is going to be trying to use radar to see a rubber(?) object floating in the sky. Not easy. The instrument package is a box maybe what, 5 feet on a side? And is probably even less. How do you propose to aim a missile at that, or the cable it’s dangling from, rather than at the center of mass as seen by a radar. Missiles are not scalpels. Bottom line: IMO, not gonna work. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/46 "2023-02-03T17:46:43Z")
Also, I would assume that the government would want to recover the device if possible, to see what instruments were on board. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/47 "2023-02-03T18:06:51Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > That and it was probably over Canada before then, and we wouldn’t have cared until it came south of the border. But, why didn’t Canada tell us about it? Was it? I haven’t heard or read anything about the path of the balloon. It might have come over Washington or Oregon. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/48 "2023-02-03T18:09:38Z")
Another assumption here, but I imagine we’ve been tracking it a lot longer than before it entered US airspace, because how else would they know it came from China? ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/49 "2023-02-03T18:11:03Z")
Testing ways to get around Space Force? Checking upper air currents to release some biological agent? ---
**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 3, 2023, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/50 "2023-02-03T18:13:46Z")
Donnie Junior said that the Montana militia could just shoot it down. Yeah, firing randomly into the air is always a good idea. And the idea that he’s actually calling for help from _militias_ is a frightening thought. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/51 "2023-02-03T18:27:01Z")
> [@griffin1977](#): > > And China has actual spy satellites so why would they do that? This is what i don’t understand. What do you get from a spy balloon that you don’t get from a spy satellite? “Listening to our cell phone chatter” seems like a stretch. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/52 "2023-02-03T18:29:29Z")
Can’t they send a space cowboy up there to lasso the balloon and drag it back to earth for study? ---
**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 3, 2023, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/53 "2023-02-03T18:33:02Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Donnie Junior said that the Montana militia could just shoot it down. Yeah, firing randomly into the air is always a good idea. And the idea that he’s actually calling for help from _militias_ is a frightening thought. Well of course, once you understand that the current D administration in Washington are nothing but traitors and all red-blooded militiamen are True Americans, then it becomes easy to understand why you want the militiamen on the job, not those sissified wokies from the Pentagon. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/54 "2023-02-03T18:33:15Z")
It’s like 600-1200 miles closer, so you can get much more detailed images. Lots of the images from Google Maps are from planes, for example, not from satellites. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/55 "2023-02-03T18:34:46Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Donnie Junior said that the Montana militia could just shoot it down. Well, he’s obviously an idiot (but we knew that already), but as @LSLGuy referred to, the balloon is at an altitude of 60,000 feet, or miles above the operating ceiling of the U.S.'s fighter planes; obviously, the Montana militia’s AR-15s aren’t going to make it more than a tiny fraction of the way there. Junior’s just stirring up the base with a worthless suggestion. ---
**Author:** ![griffin1977](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/977dab/32.png) [@griffin1977](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/griffin1977)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/56 "2023-02-03T18:37:18Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > It’s like 600-1200 miles closer, so you can get much more detailed images. Lots of the images from Google Maps are from planes, for example, not from satellites. Only if it _happens_ to get that close to a sensitive site, which it has almost zero chance of doing (and while I’m not an expert I thought the quality of an image through the atmosphere at a glancing angle was much worse than one directly down from a satellite due to the density closer to the earth) The idea that a balloon released from China would happen to pass close enough to a nuclear site to get a good surveillance photo is laughable ---
**Author:** ![Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b487fb/32.png) [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walken_After_Midnight)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/57 "2023-02-03T18:42:49Z")
> [@RitterSport](#): > > It’s like 600-1200 miles closer, so you can get much more detailed images. Lots of the images from Google Maps are from planes, for example, not from satellites. Then why don’t they just use Google Maps? > [@griffin1977](#): > > Only if it _happens_ to get that close to a sensitive site, which it has almost zero chance of doing… According to the Pentagon press secretary, the balloon “has the ability to maneuver.” ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/58 "2023-02-03T18:48:19Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > No manned interceptor can get closer than 6 _miles_ below the altitude of the balloon. And since you can’t easily fire straight up, and especially not at your own max altitude, the minimum slant range to the target at launch will be more like 10-12 miles, maybe more like 20. Any interceptor or missile is going to be trying to use radar to see a rubber(?) object floating in the sky. Not easy. > > The instrument package is a box maybe what, 5 feet on a side? And is probably even less. Has the altitude been publicly released? Why do you think the instruments are that size? > [@griffin1977](#): > > The idea that a balloon released from China would happen to pass close enough to a nuclear site to get a good surveillance photo is laughable You should consider that you’re not an expert on the navigation of balloons. > [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](#): > > Then why don’t they just use Google Maps? If this was viable for their purposes, why do they have the satellites either? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2023, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/59 "2023-02-03T18:48:27Z")
> [@Walken\_After\_Midnight](#): > > Then why don’t they just use Google Maps? Exactly. It’s not like it’s hard to get that data. ---
**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 3, 2023, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228/60 "2023-02-03T19:15:34Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Has the altitude been publicly released? Why do you think the instruments are that size? I thought I had read 90,000 feet in at least one article. Although whether the source for that was any good or not is unknown. But that’s what I was running with. As to instrument size, there are vids & still from vids available. Which include what appear to be an array of rectangles suspended under the balloon. Typical high altitude weather / research balloons are long tapered things when released that eventually assume a near-spherical shape at their maximum altitude when the internal amount of gas can fully expand the envelope versus the greatly reduced outside pressure up there. I was WAGging / Feynman-ing off a guess of a balloon 50 feet in diameter. If the balloon is much larger or smaller my estimate will be off. Bottom line: Somewhat anally extracted, but not totally wacko-unfounded. See here for more: > **[High-altitude balloon](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-altitude_balloon)** > > High-altitude balloons or stratostats are usually uncrewed balloons typically filled with helium or hydrogen and released into the stratosphere, generally attaining between 18 and 37 km (11 and 23 mi; 59,000 and 121,000 ft) above sea level. In 2013, a balloon named BS 13-08 reached a record altitude of 53.7 km (33.4 mi; 176,000 ft). > The most common type of high-altitude balloons are weather balloons. Other purposes include use as a platform for experiments in the upper atmosphere. Modern balloon... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pentagon-is-tracking-a-chinese-spy-balloon/979228.md?page=4)