Pentagon Memo Says Object Was 'Metallic Balloon'

A Pentagon memo obtained by CNN has more details on one of the "unidentified aerial objects" shot down over the weekend. The memo states the object shot down by a US fighter jet over Canada's Yukon territory on Saturday at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's request was a "small, metallic balloon with a tethered payload below it." Authorities had previously described it as a "cylindrical object." The memo states that it passed near "US sensitive" sites before it was shot down. The memo said Canadian officials working with FBI agents are trying to recover debris. Authorities say rough terrain in the area is making it difficult to find debris from the Yukon object and one shot down in Alaska a day earlier.

The memo also stated that an object shot down over Lake Huron on Sunday "subsequently slowly descended" into the water. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Monday that the origin of the three objects was still unknown, though Americans "shouldn't worry about aliens." He said the objects were shot down because of the possible risk to aviation. He said they were only spotted because air defense radars was adjusted to detect high-flying, slow-moving objects after a Chinese spy balloon was shot down on Feb. 4, the AP reports.

Lake Huron is split between Michigan and Ontario. The search for debris appears to be focusing on the Canadian side of the lake, though residents say they haven't been told anything. Tara Shannon on Canada's Manitoulin Island tells the Guardian that it was "surreal" to find out that airspace over the island was closed after a mystery object was shut down. "It certainly made for an interesting afternoon, because being up here, there's not a lot happening in the winter," Shannon says. "You’ve got snow, and you’ve got curling. And maybe some snow activities. And that's about it." (More spy balloon stories.)