The US Air Force may have shot down an amateur radio pico balloon over Canada

Re:The US Air Force may have shot down an amateur radio pico... by postalrat on Thursday February 16, 2023 @08:18AM (#34818237)

If that balloon could go anywhere anytime then why can't I?

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Re:The US Air Force may have shot down an amateur radio pico... by mrguyorama on Thursday February 16, 2023 @03:10PM (#34825150)

Are you willing to take an AIM-9X to the face? Because if you are willing to be intercepted you can go a lot of places. At least, once.

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Re:The US Air Force may have shot down an amateur radio pico... by somenameforme on Friday February 17, 2023 @12:21AM (#34831095)

I believe that is the point he was making. 90 foot balloons aren't exactly discrete and if they were ever used for spying, their shelf life would be extremely low with a high probability of ending up being seized by whoever you were spying on, on top of it. Maybe you have some self detonation mechanism on board, but now you also are sending something which could be perceived to be a weapon. It's just really not a logical concept, at all.

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Re:The US Air Force may have shot down an amateur radio pico... by Fatnino on Friday February 17, 2023 @04:40AM (#34832727)

Most countries can't hit something hanging out at 60000 feet. The US can, but it can also blow up satellites.

So if you can send satellites over unmolested, maybe you also try with a huge-ass balloon. It's way cheaper. Worth a shot.

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