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Key Points
- China’s spy balloon took off from a base on Hainan Island along the country’s southern coast, American intelligence reportedly believes. New satellite imagery obtained by researchers shows that the island is home to a balloon launch facility.
- Researchers at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies identified the facility in satellite imagery captured by space imaging firm Planet Labs. It’s unclear if the facility identified in the imagery is related to the spy balloon which crossed the U.S. earlier this month.
- But the discovery follows reporting from The Washington Post late Tuesday that U.S. intelligence officials now think the People’s Liberation Army launched the infamous spy balloon from Hainan with the intent of spying on U.S. military bases in the Pacific.
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