February 2023 High-Altitude Object Shootdowns
Between February 4 and February 12, 2023, U.S. and Canadian forces engaged and destroyed four unidentified high-altitude objects over North American airspace. The fourth — the F-16C Lake Huron engagement on February 12 — was declassified under PURSUE Release 02 as catalog entry DOW-UAP-PR071.
The February 2023 high-altitude object incidents were a four-event sequence in which U.S. and Canadian military forces engaged and destroyed unidentified objects over North American airspace within a nine-day window. The first event on February 4 — a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon downed off the South Carolina coast at 60,000 feet by a USAF F-22 firing an AIM-9X Sidewinder — was the most publicly attributed. The three subsequent shootdowns (February 10 off northern Alaska, February 11 over Canada's Yukon Territory, February 12 over Lake Huron) involved smaller unidentified objects whose origin AARO has not publicly identified. The Lake Huron engagement gun-camera infrared video was uploaded to a classified network in February 2023 and declassified under PURSUE Release 02 on May 22, 2026 as catalog entry DOW-UAP-PR071 — a 46-second clip whose AARO description notes 'a kinetic interaction between two distinct areas of contrast.'
“A kinetic interaction between two distinct areas of contrast, with the initial subject of the footage fragmenting in a radial displacement pattern that suggests a high-energy event.”
February 4: Chinese surveillance balloon (South Carolina)
The first shootdown of the February 2023 series was a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon engaged by a USAF F-22 Raptor off the South Carolina coast at approximately 60,000 feet altitude. The F-22 fired a single AIM-9X Sidewinder air-to-air missile and the balloon descended into Atlantic waters where Navy and Coast Guard recovery teams recovered debris over the following days. The U.S. attributed the platform to the People's Republic of China; PRC denied the attribution and characterized the balloon as a 'civilian weather research vehicle.' This is the only one of the four February 2023 objects to which AARO has publicly attached an origin.
February 10: Alaska object
On February 10, 2023, a smaller unidentified object was engaged and downed off the northern Alaska coast inside U.S. airspace. The Pentagon described the object as 'roughly the size of a small car' and at an altitude of approximately 40,000 feet. AARO has not publicly identified the object's origin, propulsion mechanism, or recovery status.
February 11: Yukon Territory object
On February 11, 2023, U.S. and Canadian fighter aircraft engaged and downed an unidentified object over Canada's Yukon Territory. The object was described as 'small and cylindrical' at approximately 40,000 feet altitude. Canadian Armed Forces participated in the engagement under the NORAD bilateral defense agreement. AARO has not publicly attributed the object's origin.
February 12: Lake Huron (DOW-UAP-PR071)
On February 12, 2023, a USAF Air National Guard F-16C engaged and downed an unidentified object over Lake Huron in the U.S. Northern Command area of responsibility. The 46-second gun-camera infrared video — catalog entry DOW-UAP-PR071 — was uploaded to a classified network the same month and declassified under PURSUE Release 02 on May 22, 2026. AARO's video description notes 'a kinetic interaction between two distinct areas of contrast, with the initial subject of the footage fragmenting in a radial displacement pattern that suggests a high-energy event.' The 'two distinct areas of contrast' are the F-16C's AIM-9X Sidewinder missile and the target object; the 'radial displacement pattern' is the missile detonation fragmenting the object.
Why three of the four objects remain unidentified
The Pentagon and AARO have publicly acknowledged that objects #2, #3, and #4 from the February 2023 series have not been definitively identified. The most-likely explanations cited in unclassified DoD statements have ranged from foreign-state surveillance platforms to commercial weather and hobbyist payloads. AARO's investigation status for the Lake Huron event remains formally open more than three years after the engagement; the official declassification of the gun-camera footage in PURSUE Release 02 does not constitute a closure of the investigation.