News

Chinese 'spy balloon' spotted over US and the memes are out of this world

Chinese 'spy balloon' spotted over US and the memes are out of this world
'Chinese spy balloon' flies over US
content.jwplatform.com

The US government announced on Thursday it is tracking a high-altitude balloon which they suspect is a Chinese surveillance balloon.

According to defense officials, the balloon is the size of three buses and flying “well above commercial air traffic” in Montana.

“Once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information,” Pentagon press secretary Brig Gen Patrick S Ryder told reporters.

Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

He did not specify what the measures were but senior defense officials said they sent F-22 fighter jets to track it.

The announcement shocked many Americans and set Twitter alight with memes and responses about the mysterious Chinese surveillance balloon.


Some compared the airborne mystery to budget airline Spirit

One wag brought up Eric Swalwell's links to a Chinese spy

Maybe someone could send up the infamous Trump balloon to intercept it?

Don't worry, Kari Lake says she's on it.

Will the balloon be brave enough to float over certain states?


Some have suggestions of what to do with the balloon once it's taken down.


Defense officials did not share too many details as to why the balloon is above the continental US, what it could be looking for, or how the country will respond.

But lawmakers quickly stepped in offering their best ideas to get rid of the balloon.

The first, and seemingly most obvious solution being “shoot it down.”

As some wondered why the US government had not taken down the balloon yet, conspiracies began to arise.

Some people believe the balloon had already acquired sensitive information that it was using against President Joe Biden.

Others believe the balloon carried dangerous weapons that could destroy the US.


One person thought the balloon could fall and trigger a volcanic eruption at Yellowstone, which last erupted 70,000 years ago.

The US government said the idea of shooting down the balloon had already been pondered upon, and Biden was advised not to take that action by the Pentagon due to fear of debris hitting people on the ground as reported by the New York Times.

According to officials, who requested to remain anonymous to the New York Times, this is not the first time China has sent a spy balloon to the US, and the government was not concerned the balloon posed a physical or military threat.

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

The Conversation (0)
x