The flying objects shot down over the USA probably have nothing to do with extraterrestrials. But where are they from? The US government is still groping in the dark.
According to the US government, the flying objects shot down over North America are not related to extraterrestrials. The White House in Washington felt compelled to make this clarification yesterday (local time).
“There is no evidence of aliens or extraterrestrial activity in these recent launches,” said spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre. Previously, there had been speculation on social media about the origin of the missiles, including whether it might be an alien invasion.
Salvage is difficult
However, what really lies behind the downed equipment is still not known, said the communications director of the National Security Council, John Kirby. The salvage of the rubble continues to be very difficult because of the terrain. One of the objects crashed on sea ice off Alaska, another was at the bottom of a lake.
However, the US Navy has had more success in recovering the Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down off the US Atlantic coast on February 4. Search parties had managed to bring an antenna device around ten meters high from the seabed to the surface, the broadcaster CBS reported on Monday evening. The remains would be taken to an FBI lab for testing, it said.
Since Friday, the US military had shot down three unidentified flying objects in North American airspace. One over Alaska, one over Canada, and one over Lake Huron, which is part of the Great Lakes in the northern United States bordering Canada. So far, there is little reliable information about what the missiles could be or what they were used for. The object shot down over Canada on Saturday was a small metal balloon to which cargo was tied, CNN reported on Monday evening (local time), citing an internal Pentagon memo.
“We see more because we seek more”
It was only in early February that a suspected Chinese spy balloon entered US airspace and caused a stir. A few days after its appearance, the US Air Force shot down the vehicle over the Atlantic off the coast of the state of South Carolina. Since then, people have been looking very closely, Kirby said when asked why so many flying objects were suddenly taken out of the sky by US fighter jets.
“We see more because we seek more,” Kirby explained. The radar settings have been refined and they are now specifically looking for smaller objects that move more slowly – just like balloons. Such objects are harder to locate, Kirby explained.
Kirby said the small objects were launched with rockets “out of sheer caution.” Due to their flight altitude – much lower than the Chinese balloon – the companions would have posed a possible danger to civil air traffic. Now the focus is on recovering the debris to find out what the objects are all about. Only one thing was already clear, Kirby reassured: The missiles would not have posed a threat.
It was examined whether the objects posed a danger to people on the ground and whether they sent out signals. “They didn’t,” Kirby said. Also, unlike the Chinese balloon, they were not manoeuvrable, but were driven solely by the wind.
White House under pressure
Also unlike the Chinese balloon, which the government seems certain was spying, the other objects may have been pursuing more benign targets. “We know that countries, companies and research institutes operate objects at such heights”, for example for scientific purposes, said Kirby.
The White House is still under pressure. Republicans in particular are demanding more information about the downed flying objects. “People are scared and they believe crazy things that are on the internet,” tweeted right-wing Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has a history of conspiracy theories. It is not about extraterrestrials, she clarified at least, but there is a lack of transparency.
Kirby promised that at least congressmen and the governments of the affected states would be given more information about the shootings in the coming days. Much of this is likely to take place behind closed doors for the time being. The US citizens will probably have to be patient a little longer before they find out what’s flying around in the sky above their heads.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
