Weather ballons and UFOs: FSU professor offers historical perspective on aerial surveillance

By: Bill Wellock | Published: February 15, 2023 | 12:03 pm | SHARE: The recent incursion of a Chinese spy balloon and other flying objects into American airspace evoked memories of aerial reconnaissance missions from the Cold War era. After a U.S. Air Force fighter downed the balloon, officials sent its antenna array to a Federal Bureau of Investigation lab.

How Old are Whale Sharks? Nuclear Bomb Legacy Reveals Their Age

Nuclear bomb tests during the Cold War in the 1950s and 1960s have helped scientists accurately estimate the age of whale sharks, the biggest fish in the seas, according to a Rutgers-led study. It’s the first time the age of this majestic species has been verified. One whale shark was an estimated 50 years old when it died, making it the oldest known of its kind. Another shark was an estimated 35 years old.