[moovova]

“What could they possible spot on the ground that can’t be seen with their own satellites or Google Earth?”

My thoughts also.

[Hot Tabasco]

And another thing. If its path was being guided by the Chinese, it would require something to propel it in the direction they wanted it to go and with the balloon that size and the equipment it was carrying, it would require a pretty big motor and propeller and enough fuel capacity to keep it going for all the days it was sailing in the atmosphere.

At the time it was shot down, it was estimated to be at approx. 60,000 to 65,000 feet. At that altitude, there wouldn't be enough oxygen to sustain the engine.

Plus, if it was their intent to spy, it would have made more sense to fly directly east to the US rather than the thousands of miles NE to Alaska then back SE thru Canada into the US. The path it took appears to have been influenced by the shifting jet stream which travels west to east with shifting northerly and southerly winds.