The Chinese spy balloon, captured by satellite. Identifying a balloon on Earth from space may seem like finding a needle in a haystack, but Planet did it using satellite imagery and artificial intelligence. This Overview shows a Chinese spy balloon crossing the Pacific Ocean toward the United States, where it made headlines as it hovered over the country gathering intelligence. In this photo, the balloon appears as multiple blobs of different colors, because it was captured in different wavelengths of light by the satellite, which moves rapidly above it. The balloon was first detected offshore of China on January 15th, traveled north across the Pacific, then south through Alaska and Canada before being detected in U.S. airspace on February 1st. It was shot down by the U.S. military over the Atlantic Ocean on February 4th.

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