In this photo provided by Chad Fish, the remnants of a large balloon drift above the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of South Carolina, with a fighter jet and its contrail seen below it, Feb. 4, 2023. Canadians have been inundated with reports of unidentified objects being shot down by American fighter jets over the U.S. and Canada. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Chad Fish via AP

OTTAWA - Canadians have been inundated with reports of unidentified objects being shot down by American fighter jets over the U.S. and Canada. So what do we know about what is happening — and what don't we know?

What is going on?

You have to go back to Jan. 28: That’s when U.S. officials say they first detected an alleged Chinese spy balloon entering Alaskan airspace over the Aleutian Islands. The public only learned about the balloon’s existence a few days later when it was spotted over Montana. By that point, it had already flown through Alaska and western Canada before re-entering the U.S. That balloon, which China says was actually a weather-research balloon blown off course, was shot down off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4. Fast-forward to last Friday, when the U.S. announced it had shot down an “object” off the coast of Alaska. A second “object” was shot down over central Yukon on Saturday, and a third over Lake Huron on Sunday. Both countries are now working to recover the wreckage of all four.

So what are they?

American and Canadian officials quickly blamed the first balloon on China, saying it was part of a surveillance program developed by Beijing. Officials have been far more circumspect when it comes to the other three “objects,” which have been described as smaller and flying at lower altitudes than the Chinese balloon. However, there have been numerous hints that these were also balloons. Defence Minister Anita Anand on Saturday said the object shot down over Yukon was “potentially similar” to the Chinese balloon. A senior Canadian military official also described them as “suspected” balloons on Monday. It's unclear whether they are also from China or another country, or were put in the air by enthusiasts or for some other non-threatening reason. Officials have said they won’t know more until they recover the wreckage of each, including exactly what the Chinese spy balloon was trying to do and how it worked. But they have said there is no indication the “objects” are from outer space.

Why are there so many all objects all of a sudden?

The U.S. military alleges at least four other Chinese spy balloons have violated American airspace since 2019, some of which it only learned about after the fact. (Ottawa says none of those entered Canada.) While such balloons may seem silly in the era of satellites and high-speed communication, they actually exploited what the top U.S. military officer responsible for protecting North America has described as a “gap” in the continent’s defences. Norad commander Gen. Glen VanHerck says that gap has since been closed by changing the air-warning system’s filters. Previously configured to detect aircraft and missiles, it can now find slower-moving and smaller objects like balloons that don't follow normal flight patterns and rules. It’s believed that has resulted in more potential threats being identified. However, VanHerck has also acknowledged that it means more non-threatening objects and anomalies are also being detected.

Why are they being shot down?

The Chinese balloon was shot down by an American F-22 on Feb. 4 over the Atlantic after having flown from Alaska through Canada and across much of the United States. U.S. President Joe Biden has said that he ordered it shot down as soon as he learned about it, but that military officials recommended waiting until it was over water to minimize the risk of damage on the ground. VanHerck also said military officials wanted to see what the Chinese did with the balloon before bringing it down. But in the aftermath, both Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faced criticism for not taking it down sooner. Both governments have said they decided to act faster in bringing the three “objects” because they posed a threat to civilian flights, though not everyone is buying it.

Should I be worried?

Probably not. But until we learn more, it’s still too early to say exactly what North America is dealing with. Officials say they have learned how to identify, track and destroy such slow-moving objects if there is reason for concern. However, the need to find and destroy such objects if they pose a threat represents a new and difficult challenge for the Canadian and American militaries. And while officials don’t believe the balloon and three objects posed a physical threat, that wouldn’t have been the case if one of them had been carrying a nuclear, chemical or biological weapon. Some have pointed to this new threat as another reason to modernize Norad’s aging systems, which Ottawa and Washington have promised to do over the next decade.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2023.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2023