US Military To Improve Tracking Of Hobbyists' Balloons
/Hobbyists will be glad to know that the US military is making an effort to be more balloon-friendly.
NORAD - the North American Aerospace Defense Command - has been making a concentrated effort to track and identify objects that might be high-altitude weather, research or hobbyist radio balloons, such as ones launched by amateur radio clubs and school groups. NORAD is now studying numerous websites to determine as best as it can what balloons are flying over North America at any given time. US fighter jets shot down three hobbyists' balloons in 2023 after detecting - and shooting down - another high-altitude balloon, which the government department identified as a spy balloon from China.
Steven Armstrong, NORAD's chief of strategic engagement, told the military website Task & Purpose that NORAD is now taking a closer look at raw radar returns to ensure more hobbyists' balloons don't meet the same fate. NORAD now reaches out to hobbyist or researcher groups when it is practical to do so.
It seems to be working. Armstrong said that in April, NORAD confirmed there was a hobbyist balloon that had been launched but concluded it did not pose a threat.
