Did Chinese spy balloon deviate off intended course by strong winds into the US?

New Delhi: The US is reportedly looking into the possibility that the Chinese ‘spy’ balloon might have entered the country’s air space due to strong winds that drifted it off course.

In the last few days the US has shot down four unidentified objects in its air space, the first of which, a spy balloon, it claims was part of a wider Chinese surveillance programme.

The possibility emerged as US defence secretary Lloyd Austin said, that the three other unidentified objects shot down by US didn’t present a military threat, however risked civil aviation and were potential intelligence threat.

Austin further added that the US military have not recovered remains of the three objects, which were significantly smaller than the Chinese spy balloon.

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The balloon, which was shot down off the coast of South Carolina on 4 February, had been tracked for about a week before entering the US airspace. It appeared to be heading towards Guam before taking an unexpected diversion to the north, US officials told Washington Post.

Earlier, the US claimed that the balloon was deliberately sent into the US airspace to gather military installations in the Pacific. However, its deviation has prompted analysts to explore if China even intended the balloon to enter US airspace.

Electronic sensors recovered from Chinese spy balloon

Electronic mechanism and key sensors, presumably used for intelligence gathering, were recovered from the first balloon suspected to be a Chinese spy balloon, officials announced on Monday, New York Post reported.

The parts were recovered from the ocean by Navy personnel.

Members of the FBI's evidence response team have since been studying the remnants to assess how extensive its surveillance capabilities were, but didn't have access to the majority of the balloon's "payload" -- its onboard electronics. The military now has possession of critical electronics.

Timeline of the flying objects shot down by US

4 February: A Chinese spy balloon was shot down over the South Carolina's coast before it entered the US airspace over Alaska on 28 January and later drifted from southeast to South Carolina.

10 February: A UFO was shot down over Alaska. The object was first detected the previous night, and was headed towards the North Pole.

11 February: An American F-22 fighter jet shot down an object over the Yukon Territory, which borders Alaska. The object was described as cylindrical and smaller than the ‘spy’ balloon.

12 February: An unidentified octagonal structured object was shot down over Lake Huron. It first appeared over Montana a day before it was shot down over Lake Huron off Michigan.

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