Mystery object falls from sky, area sealed off by military: 'Weather balloon', say officials

Simply nobody will be giving any credence to officials in America who have stated that a mystery object which fell from the sky this week - after which the surrounding area was evacuated and sealed off for some time by police and military personnel - was just a "weather balloon". Reportedly, large numbers of government …

[web_bod]

Watch the news clip - it looks pretty weather ballooney too me, the payload looks a bit battered though.

I guess "package", "wires" and "strange noises" flagged it as a possible bomb.

[AndyS]

I reckon they just used the standard US Air Force Aircraft Identification Chart:

http://www.openminds.tv/wp-content/uploads/US-Air-Force-UFO-Chart.jpg

[Wzrd1]

Strange that one weather balloon or swamp gas sample wasn't included, the SR-71.

[Rampant Spaniel]

Yup balloon or something vaguely innocent but secret, say perhaps a darpa test balloon with a gsm or other radio for troops. I doubt it was ET :-) Although I'm sure if it was darpa they would love you to think it's ET.

[Wzrd1]

Doubt a device meant for the troops was dropped over the USA, where a war is not going on.

Yet...

The left-right thing is rather tense.

[Tom 13]

Re: flagged it as a possible bomb.

No accouterments required. If a bag is sitting by itself in any public location for more than 5 minutes it is assumed to be a bomb. No proof required.

[Danny 14]

Re: flagged it as a possible bomb.

Probably a military comms package being tested on a balloon. Maybe with an exotic power supply.

[Wzrd1]

Re: flagged it as a possible bomb.

Every military comms device I've seen tested was dangled from a helicopter. Less chance of losing it, greater control, as helicopters don't float away.

Of course, my experience is limited by a small sample size of a dozen classified devices being tested.

[Wzrd1]

They *do* send up a lot of weather balloons to measure high altitude things. When one comes down unexpectedly in a populated area, shades of a Japanese bomb from WWII come to mind, as a family was erased by one during WWII.

Think even worse with a radiothermic generator, one really gets the hot and bothered look.

But, many will assume an NSA balloon that replaces the dozens of satellites that blanket the globe or something even crazier.

[Ralph B]

Watch the news clip

From what I saw, it looks like the results of a pretty typical UPS or FedEx delivery.

[rcorrect]

Icon related.

[Destroy All Monsters]

"One person told authorities it was making a strange noise."

The way things are going this just means the person calling hasn't heard that noise on TV yet. Not in the library of Skywalker Sounds.

[Grave]

"One person told authorities it was making a strange noise."

lost in translation: "we come in peace"....

[NomNomNom]

It was whispering pleasantries

[Vladimir Plouzhnikov]

No, it was muffled "Exterminate! Exterminate!"

[Anonymous Coward]

Let me out you bast*rds, let me out!

[Wzrd1]

I seem to recall some sonde units having an audio beeper to help locate the things.

Remember sonde units? They hang from weather balloons that monitor all manner of weather data.

Though, I'd not be surprised to see an NSA scrotum sniffer added on...

[Roger Stenning]

Any mention...

..of Project Scoop was, of course, treated with extreme prejudice - I mean, contempt...

[HuwLewis]

One of our Playmonauts is missing?

Has LOHAN gone AWOL? We should be told...

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: One of our Playmonauts is missing?

Good point - are they sure the Playmonaut crashed into the Channel - or was his advanced craft beamed aboard an alien mothership where he spent the last few months bringing about galactic peace in the Kirk manner by canoodling with interstellar vixens; or was he probed into insanity by multitentacled horrors from beyond*?

* for all our sakes let's hope it's the former.

[oolor]

Re: One of our Playmonauts is missing?

Surely a more terrestrial explanation can suffice:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USA-240

[Thesheep]

Hey need better copywriters...

The flash of light you saw in the sky was not a UFO. Swamp gas from a weather balloon was trapped in a thermal pocket and reflected the light from Venus

[StooMonster]

Re: Hey need better copywriters...

Ignited by ball lightning?

[ChrisInBelgium]

mmm

I somehow have this urge to make strangely shaped mounds of mashed potatoes...

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: mmm

Unfortunately the mashed potatoes won't work. this time the aliens want to hold their landing powwow at the Gherkin.

[toxicdragon]

Re: mmm

Just remember a sponge for the blancmange

[toxicdragon]

Re: mmm

spoon.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: mmm

Even better, I now have a strange desire to eat at McDonalds and I always ask for extra gherkins.

[beast666]

Re: mmm

They peel them with their little knives...

[Andus McCoatover]

Re: mmm - They peel them with their little knives...

Bet very few got that smashing quote...

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: mmm - They peel them with their little knives...

I did ... though I think someone would need to do a mash-up to explain it to todays "youf"

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: mmm

Then boil them for 20 of their minutes.

Then smash them all to bits.

That reminds me that I was recently trying to explain to the members of my family my memories of a "missing" Smash advert that I couldn't find on YouTube or anywhere else. They go on holiday "They never have any good food on the Planet Zarg" or somesuch and they get the Smash confiscated at customs. The didn't believe me until I actually managed to find it somewhere. Those ads were so awesome. :D

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: mmm

Is this the one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLYNoejZcv0

Kind of thinking it's over-rated...

[Andus McCoatover]

Re: mmm

Over-rated! God 'struth, man it was in 625-line, and colour at that! Luxury!!

In view of the recent announcement that the Japanese have launched a playm...robot into space, the advert. was waaay ahead of its time.

[RAMChYLD]

Re: mmm

Wait, Cadbury made mashed potatoes? I thought they only made chocolate!

The stuff I missed out :(

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: mmm

I have this urge to make mashed potato sculptures of Monica Bellucci.

[Anonymaus Cowark]

a ballon with an attached camera would explain the wires and the styrofoam (so the electronics won't get too cold)

[Byz]

it's...

The new Google street view vehicle :o

[Parax]

Re: it's...

Project Loon?

[Parax]

Re: it's...

It's more likely a Space Data Corporation balloon .

Surprised link had not already been made since it's mentioned here.

[Paul Hovnanian]

Re: it's...

Quite likely. But if they are testing a device for extending military communications, shouldn't they anticipate its occasional falling into 'enemy' hands.

Over friendly territory, a sign requesting return to the appropriate authorities when found should be sufficient. No quarantines or evacuations required. If these things are ever used during a conflict, occasionally one will fall on the wrong side of the front line. If security is such a major issue, these things would be useless.

[Parax]

Was there a playmonaut aboard?

'Strange Noises' isn't really a descriptive term, was it a locator beep, or a whirring fan mashed up with styrofoam?

[Annihilator]

Strange noise, perhaps meaning a gradually increasing:

Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee...splat

?

[hplasm]

Feet of shining screw projected, when suddenly...

The lid fell off.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Feet of shining screw projected, when suddenly...

"Feet of shining screw projected, when suddenly... The lid fell off."

The chances of it being anything like that are... pretty low.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: The chances

....but still, they come!

[Marco Fontani]

Russel! Hey, Russel?

They've found your teapot.

[Robert E A Harvey]

released from Where?

Do they really expect me to believe there is a place called Wallop's Island?