We talked about the Chinese . And also of aliens. But at least one of the flying objects shot down by the US military last week could be a small balloon launched by a group of Illinois enthusiasts and then vanishing.
The last location of the silver-coated balloon launched in October last year by hobbyists from the Northern Illinois Bottlecap Balloon Brigade was Feb. 10 at 38,910 feet off the west coast of Alaska, according to Aviation Week.
And the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicted that the cylindrical object would float above the central part of the Yukon Territory on Feb. 11. That is: the same day that a US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-22 shot down an unidentified object with a similar description and altitude in the same area.
The type of footballs like those thrown by the club can cost anywhere from $12 to $180. Ron Meadows, founder of Scientific Balloon Solutions, a Silicon Valley company that makes purpose-built balloons for hobbyists and scientists, said: "I've tried reaching out to our military and the FBI to try to brief them on what many of them are likely to these objects. And explain to them that they don't look very smart if you shoot them down,” Meadows joked.
(Unioneonline/lf)
