What we know about the unidentified object shot down over Alaska

The object, which officers haven’t characterised as a balloon, was shot down at 1.45 pm EST (5.45am Saturday Sydney time), in keeping with Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder.

Alaska is one of the least populated parts of the United States. — Alaska is likely one of the least populated components of the United States. (AP)

“[I]t came inside our territorial waters — and those waters right now are frozen — but inside territorial airspace and over territorial waters,” National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby instructed reporters on Friday.

“Fighter aircraft assigned to US Northern Command took down the object within last hour.”

Asked in regards to the operation on Friday afternoon, President Joe Biden instructed CNN, “It was a hit.”

Here’s a take a look at what we all know to this point.

According to Kirby, Biden was first briefed on the item on Thursday night, as “soon as the Pentagon had enough information.” It “didn’t seem like self-maneuvering,” Kirby said.

It’s unclear what the item seems like, or the place it got here from.

On Friday, Ryder mentioned it was touring north east throughout Alaska.

He declined to offer a bodily characterisation, solely saying that it was “about the size of a small car” and “not similar in size or shape” to the Chinese surveillance balloon that was downed off the coast of South Carolina on February 4.

Joe Biden has ordered an object flying over Alaska be shot down. — Biden was first briefed on the item on Thursday night, as “soon as the Pentagon had enough information (AP)

“We’re calling this an object as a result of that is the most effective description we’ve got proper now,” Kirby said.

“We do not know who owns it – whether or not it is state-owned or corporate-owned or privately-owned, we simply do not know.”

Object first detected on Thursday

F-35 fighter jets were sent up to investigate after the object was first detected on Thursday, according to a US official.

There was not a significant concern about damage to people or property if the object was shot down, which was the primary reason the Chinese surveillance balloon was allowed to traverse the continental US last week.

Ryder also emphasised that officials do not know the origin of the object, which did not appear to be manned, and that it was shot down because it posed a “cheap risk to civilian air site visitors” as it was flying at 40,000 feet.

Kirby told reporters that the first fly-by of US fighter aircraft happened on Thursday night, and the second happened on Friday morning.

Both brought back “restricted” information about the object.

Ultimately, the object was downed near the Canadian border and northeastern Alaska by a F-22 fighter jet out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, equipped with an AIM-9X — the same aircraft and missile used to take down the surveillance balloon.

A US official said the military waited to shoot the object down during daylight hours to make it easier for the pilots to spot it.

Ryder said the mission was “supported with aerial property from the Alaska Air National Guard.”

The Alaska National Guard and units under US Northern Command, along with HC-130 Hercules, HH-60 Pave Hawk, and CH-47 Chinook are all participating in the effort to recover the object, Ryder said.

In this photo provided by Chad Fish, a large balloon drifts above the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of South Carolina, with a fighter jet and its contrail seen below it. — In this photo provided by Chad Fish, a large balloon drifts above the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of South Carolina, before it was shot down by a fighter jet. (AP)

No apparent connection to the Chinese balloon

Officials have given no indication so far that the object is at all related to the Chinese surveillance balloon downed last weekend, debris of which is still being recovered on the Atlantic Ocean floor.

Ryder said on Friday that recovery teams have “mapped the particles subject” and are “within the strategy of looking for and figuring out particles on the ocean flooring.”

“While I will not go into specifics because of classification causes,” Ryder said, “I can say that we’ve got situated a major quantity of particles to this point that can show useful to our additional understanding of this balloon and its surveillance capabilities.”

When asked on Friday if lessons learned about China’s balloon assisted in detecting the object shot down over Alaska, Ryder said it was “just a little little bit of apples and oranges.”

The object did not appear to have any surveillance equipment, according to a US official, which would make it both smaller and likely less sophisticated than the Chinese balloon shot.