Debris from a suspected spy balloon that commercial fishers pulled out of the water near Alaska's coast in February had been in the ocean for "well over a year," according to a Department of Defense spokesperson.
“Some material has been transferred to U.S. government facilities for further examination and analysis," the spokesperson, Sue Gough, told The Hill Saturday when explaining that the inspection showed that the debris had been in the ocean for some time.
The FBI, which confirmed the debris discovery, has not indicated its potential source.
"The FBI is aware of debris found off the coast of Alaska by a commercial fishing vessel," the agency said in a statement. "We will work with our partners to assist with the logistics of the debris recovery."
Last year, a Chinese spy balloon was hovering over the United States for a week before the military shot it down off the South Carolina coast.
At that time, President Joe Biden called the spy balloon "more embarrassing" than intentional and said he did not believe China's leaders knew where the balloon had headed.
If the debris found last month is confirmed as a foreign spy balloon, it would be the latest episode of balloon sightings and recovery, including last month when a high-altitude balloon of was spotted over the western United States.
NORAD later said the balloon was likely from a hobbyist and was non-threatening.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.