>

Global warming and air pollution monitoring systems, because China is so environmentally friendly.
Lot of off course weather balloons. >

It’s a global weather survey. >

Globally surveying weather or not they can spy on everyone everywhere all at once? >

Gotta globally survey the weather above the US’s ICBMs of course >

Can't forget it drifting over Lake City Army Ammunition Plant the very next day. >

Be refreshing if they just came out and admitted how many of these so called 'weather balloons' were actually missing. >

But also, if they really were just weather balloons, why not inform all countries where they are, not wait for them to be discovered? >

I bet there are millionaires who would pay for someone to fly them up to let them shoot at it. >

Why can't a high-power laser be used? There are consumer-grade blue lasers that can pop balloons from a pretty significant range with relative ease. I'd imagine the government has significantly higher-power devices available- capable of doing the same thing from much further away and the cost of operating a laser would likely be much cheaper than sending multi-million dollar missiles at them. >

See the Airborne Laser Program (now cancelled).
Keeping a high-power laser focused and effective through atmospheric scattering is a difficult and expensive problem. >

I'm not really talking about anything from the old Star Wars program. I know for a fact that the US has successfully(and somewhat recently) tested anti-drone\anti-missile systems that utilize a high-powered laser to shoot down incoming missiles(by literally igniting their fuel source until it explodes) and take down drones with them as well.
We have lasers that are powerful enough to focus a beam on a small area thousands of feet (if not miles) away and heat it up to the point of melting\structural failure. Given the consumer-grade technology that's out there, I find it difficult to believe the government couldn't just have used something military-grade from a plane to pop the damn thing.
I mean I know a 400,000 sidewinder missile is "cheap" by comparison to some of the other weapons available, but it would have been a lot cheaper to use a little electricity than a munition. >

What aircraft mounted high power laser are you referring to? >

Too energy intensive/too heavy is my guess. 
The ship has a nuclear reactor powering it. That’s gonna help using a high energy weapon like a laser and doesn’t really have the problem of weight to worry about >

It won't be for long. >

What are they doing with those ballons >

Possibly playing a game of "I'm not touching you".
If the countries the balloons fly over don't react, China will paint them as pushovers.
If they react, China will say they are overreacting and are hostile.
Also probably taking pictures because they might as well. >

Same thought. Related to that is simply pushing the limits to see where the limit is. Like, they didn't shoot down a surveillance balloon at 60,000 feet, will they shoot one down at 50,000? No, let's try 30,000, etc... >

30,000 feet would be a major headache for civilian airplanes as they fly between 30K and 40K feet. >

Or smack in the middle of the glide slope on final at FL020-080.
Sao Paulo ATC was basically like: 'Eh... try not to hit any while you're landing. Good luck.' >

I actually watched that event live on TV. I was in college at the time.
Didn't know about the trainwreck of collateral damage it caused until years later as it was way before cellphones and the internet. >

Doesn’t seem like it was well thought out that’s for sure. >

The balloons at disney land?. Also ours - China.
Balloons at timmy's party?. Believe or not... ours - China.
The 90s british band Balloon?. Guess what?. Ours baby - China. >

They seem to claim everything else, so why not. >

There's a Chinese "secret" base in the middle of Patagonia, there's not much they can learn from a balloon but to test if anyone is looking up.
Edit: Test, not taste hahaha funny mistake >

For the uninitiated >

"China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international law in order to inform and properly deal with all parties concerned, without posing any threat to any country."
everywhere like such as when dealing with pandemics... >

China informed countries so properly that they didn't even acknowledge ownership of the LatAm balloon until Columbia announced it had entered and exited their airspace. >

No respect for sovereign airspace >

♫ That was me (China) ♫
Balloon landed on the counter (That was me)
Floating over the sofa (That was me)
Balloon was taking a shower (That was me)
It even caught me on camera (That was me)
This thing was sitting on my shoulder (That was me)
Recorded words that I told her (That was me)
Replayed her screams even louder (That was me) >

Lies, lies and more lies… China, do you really think we’re that lame🤦‍♀️ >

We should offer to help a country in South America to shoot it down for them >

Lol, I don't think they want US warplanes anywhere near them. >

There are over 70 US military bases all over latinamerica and the caribean. >

Yeah, and most of the locals don't want them there >

LoL as someone whose been to a couple of them, that's definitely not true from my experience. >

Fr, a lot of the towns around bases thrive because soldiers spending their paychecks. >

Correction: was yours.