In Alaska, Biden claims that shooting down a "high-altitude object" was successful.

(cnn) ⸻ President Joe Biden told CNN that Friday's operation to shoot down a "high-altitude object" that was circling Alaska "was a success," just after US national security officials revealed that the commander-in-chief had authorised the US military to carry out the operation. This marks the second time in less than a week that American fighter jets have shot down an object flying over US airspace, but important questions about the spacecraft's history and purpose are still unresolved. According to a US source, F-35 fighter planes were sent to the area to investigate after the item was originally seen on Thursday. John Kirby, the coordinator for strategic communications for the National Security Council, stated that the object was flying at 40,000 feet and posed a reasonable threat to the safety of civilian flight. Biden was first briefed Thursday night and on the Pentagon's advice, gave the order to the military to "down the object," which they did. The object was shot down over frozen Arctic Ocean waters not far from the Canadian border, about 10 miles off Alaska's north coast. The US anticipates recovering the debris. The US Northern Command and NORAD decided to shoot down the object during the daytime due to its smaller size and lack of surveillance equipment. Military authorities expressed their conviction that the object was not a piece of equipment or property belonging to the US military or government, and the Defense Department was unaware of the "capabilities, purpose, or provenance" of the device. The Alaska Command of US Northern Command coordinated the mission, with help from the Federal Aviation Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Alaska Air National Guard. The device that was brought down over Alaska was far smaller than the Chinese surveillance balloon that was taken down on Saturday over territorial seas. US sources estimated that the payload of the Chinese balloon shot down last Saturday was around the size of three buses, and the high-altitude item shot down on Friday was said to be about the size of a compact vehicle. The second flying object has not been linked by the US to any nation or other organisation, and the object was "far less predictable" since it "did not seem to be self-maneuvering". The Federal Aviation Administration imposed a temporary flying restriction in the vicinity of Deadhorse, Alaska, and Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada, agreed with the choice to remove the item. Since last week's news about the Chinese balloon that was flying above US airspace surfaced, more information has come to light about what is now known to be a worldwide monitoring programme by the People's Liberation Army of China. Officials said on Thursday that they think the spy balloons the US has seen are a part of a sizable fleet that is carrying out worldwide monitoring activities. CNN exclusively learned that the US has devised a system to monitor China's fleet of surveillance balloons.