1 of 1 US Navy officer mails new remains of alleged Chinese balloon found off South Carolina on February 13, 2023. —Photo: Ryan Seelbach/US Navy via AP
The FBI, the US police investigative branch, began this Tuesday (14) analyzing and examining the remains of the balloon that flew over US airspace earlier this month and which Washington claims is a spy device from China.
Analysis will be possible after new remains of the balloon including sensors were recovered on Monday (13th), the White House said.
However, Washington has not yet clarified what are the other three flying objects found and shot down by the United States this weekend.
On Monday night, White House press secretary Karine JeanPierre said only “there is no evidence” that the objects were extraterrestrial. On Sunday (12), a The US Air Force general said he doesn’t rule out aliens or yet another statement related to US intelligence experts.
Check out the cases of unidentified flying objects that have surfaced in several countries
The flying object controversy began after people on the west coast of the United States reported seeing an unusual balloon in the sky. Washington was quick to claim it was Chinese equipment and said it suspected espionage. Beijing said it was a meteorological and scientific balloon that got lost.
However, the United States again claimed that the balloon was used for surveillance purposes. On February 4, the US military shot down the balloon after winds blew it into the sea.
The episode put the US armed forces on high alert and three more incidents involving flying objects were recorded in the country over the weekend:
- A carsized object flying over Alaska was shot down;
- Cylindrical object that flew over Canada and was shot down;
- Octagonal object in a lake on the USCanada border and has been knocked over.
On Monday, China also said it had detected an unidentified object in its airspace.