An unidentified object crashed 10 miles (16 km) off the frozen coast of Alaska on Friday afternoon. Americans officials, but there are few details on this subject.

It was the second time a U.S. aircraft has shot down an object in less than a week, after a suspected Chinese spy balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina last Saturday.

The object, which officials did not identify as a balloon, was shot down at 13:45. (local time), according to Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder.

“Fighters from the US Northern Command shot down an object that entered our airspace over the past hour,” the statement said. This was stated by the official representative of the White House Security Council, John Kirby.

Asked about the operation Friday afternoon, President Joe Biden told CNN: “It was a success.”

Here’s a look at what has been discovered so far, according to CNN.

Lots of unanswered questions

According to Kirby, Biden was first briefed on the matter Thursday night, “when the Pentagon had enough information.” “It doesn’t look like it was self-propelled,” Kirby said.

It is not clear what the object looks like or where it came from. On Friday, Ryder said he was heading northeast through Alaska. He declined to give a specific description, saying only that it was “the size of a small car” and that it “did not resemble in size or shape” the Chinese reconnaissance balloon that was shot down off the coast of South Carolina on February 4.

“We call it ‘object’ because it’s the best description we have at the moment,” Kirby said. “We don’t know if it belongs to the government, a corporation, or an individual.”

He was first spotted on Thursday

F-35 fighter jets were sent out to search after the object was first spotted on Thursday, a US official said.

There were no major concerns about personal injury or property damage if the facility crashed, which was the main reason a Chinese observation balloon was allowed to cross the US mainland last week.

Ryder also stressed that officials do not know the origin of the apparently unmanned object and that it was shot down because it was “reasonable threat to air traffic”, when he was flying at 40,000 feet.

Kirby told reporters that the first flight of the American fighter took place on Thursday evening, and the second – on Friday morning. Both gave “limited” information about the object.

The object was eventually shot down near the Canadian border and northeast Alaska by an F-22 fighter jet from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson equipped with an AIM-9X, the same aircraft and missile used to shoot down his balloon. A US official said the military expected to shoot down the object during the day to make it easier for pilots to find it. Ryder said the mission was “supported by Alaska Air National Guard.”

The Alaska National Guard and elements of the US Northern Command, along with HC-130 Hercules, HH-60 Pave Hawk and CH-47 Chinook helicopters, are participating in the search for the site, Ryder said.

No obvious connection to the Chinese balloon

Officials have so far given no indication that the object is in any way connected to the Chinese reconnaissance balloon that was shot down over the weekend, the wreckage of which is still being recovered from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

Ryder said on Friday that rescue teams “mapped the debris field” and “are in the process of finding and identifying debris on the ocean floor”.

“While I won’t go into details for privacy reasons,” Ryder said, “I can say that we have identified a significant amount of debris so far that will prove useful in further understanding this balloon and its surveillance capabilities.”

When asked Friday if the lessons learned from the Chinese hot air balloon helped locate the downed object over Alaska, Ryder said it “played its part.”

There was no surveillance equipment at the facility.according to a US official, making it smaller and likely less complex than a Chinese hot air balloon.

Source: CNN