Map Shows US Tracking Chinese Ships Near Alaska
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A United States reconnaissance aircraft was tracked flying over Arctic waters near Alaska over the weekend, as five Chinese research vessels arrived in the region.
When asked for comment, U.S. Northern Command said in a written response to Newsweek on Tuesday: "We do not release specific information regarding ISR platforms or missions." ISR refers to intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
Newsweek has also reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry for comment via email.
Why It Matters
The unprecedented presence of Chinese research ships in the Arctic is regarded as part of China's efforts to assert its claim as a "near-Arctic state" and as an important stakeholder in the region's affairs.
China's presence in the Arctic and its cooperation with Russia have alarmed the U.S. and its Arctic allies—Canada and Norway. Last year, the Pentagon released its updated strategy for the Arctic, calling for an increased military presence and enhanced intelligence capabilities.
What To Know
@MeNMyRC1, an open-source intelligence analyst on the social media platform X, was the first to spot the spy flight conducted by a U.S. Air Force RC-135V Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft, which can detect, identify, and geolocate signals across the electromagnetic spectrum.
"I saw this flight by 64-14841 on Saturday, and it caught my eye due to the location and 'urgency' of the flight," @MeNMyRC1 wrote, referring to the aircraft's registration number.
Using flight tracking data from online service Flightradar24, a Newsweek map shows the Rivet Joint aircraft arrived at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska, from its home station at Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha, Nebraska on August 9.
The spy plane took off again on the same day—approximately five hours after its arrival—and flew northwest. It was tracked circling over the Chukchi Sea, which lies between the Arctic Ocean to the north and the Bering Strait to the south. The mission lasted six hours.
The aircraft—which provides on-scene intelligence collection, analysis, and dissemination—returned to Nebraska the following day, approximately 10 hours after its mission.
"Looks like it was to check up on a group of Chinese 'research' ships," @MeNMyRC1 added.
According to the analyst, a second Rivet Joint aircraft, with registration number 62-4125, was deployed at Elmendorf Air Force Base but has not been tracked flying since August 1.
This spy plane, which is an RC-135W version of the aircraft, is possibly being sidelined by mechanical issues.
"This could explain why [64-14841] was dispatched up to make the flight," the analyst noted.
An RC-135V/W Rivet Joint aircraft is seen during Exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia on July 17, 2025.
An RC-135V/W Rivet Joint aircraft is seen during Exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia on July 17, 2025.
Staff Sgt. Jocelyn Tuller/U.S. Air National Guard
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for U.S. Northern Command—which is tasked with homeland defense—confirmed to Newsweek on Monday that the five Chinese vessels are being monitored while operating in the Arctic.
"Although the vessels are operating in international waters and are not considered a Homeland Defense threat, their numbers represent an increase from years past."
What People Are Saying
A U.S. Northern Command spokesperson told Newsweek on Monday: "[North American Aerospace Defense Command, NORAD] is responsible for identification and warning of maritime tracks of interest and works closely with Canada and interagency partners to do so. NORAD and [U.S. Northern Command] will continue to monitor the ships' progress while operating in the region."
The U.S. Air Force says of the Rivet Joint aircraft: "The Rivet Joint's modifications are primarily related to its on-board sensor suite, which allows the mission crew to detect, identify and geolocate signals throughout the electromagnetic spectrum. The mission crew can then forward gathered information in a variety of formats to a wide range of consumers via Rivet Joint's extensive communications suite."
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether the U.S. will deploy additional ships or aircraft to monitor the Chinese research vessels operating near Alaska.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Epoch Times
9 hours ago
- Epoch Times
China's Mosquito Factory Releases Millions of Mosquitoes; Virologist Raises Alarm
China is fighting a mosquito-borne chikungunya outbreak by releasing millions of lab-modified mosquitoes into cities. Could this backfire? A former U.S. Army virologist weighs in. Amid high-stakes trade negotiations with the Chinese regime, the White House is looking to expand a deal involving U.S. companies selling to China. L...
Politico
12 hours ago
- Politico
A new way the US may be falling behind China
The United States and China — the world's largest climate polluters — went in opposite directions during the first half of the year. Chinese carbon dioxide emissions fell 2.7 percent during the first six months of 2025, while U.S. CO2 emissions were up 4.2 percent, according to Carbon Monitor, a global emissions tracker led by an international team of academics. That's a reversal of the usual trend over the past decade, when global heat-trapping emissions inched higher in large part because U.S. reductions have been offset by higher CO2 output from China. It also comes after decades of American politicians of both parties complaining about China failing to clean up its act. Analysts say it's too soon to declare the reversal a trend. Weather and short-term economic factors like natural gas prices have a lot to do with the numbers from the first half of the year. Both can change quickly. But there are also signs of structural changes in the global economy. China emits more planet-warming pollution than any other nation, thanks to its robust appetite for coal, by far the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel. The country accounts for more than half of global coal consumption. But Chinese coal consumption fell 2.6 percent compared with the first half of 2024, according to the International Energy Agency. A solar boom is the primary reason for the shift. China installed a staggering 92 gigawatts of solar capacity in May alone, taking the total capacity of its solar fleet to more than 1 terawatts, according to IEA. To put that number in context, total U.S. solar capacity was about 134 GW at the end of June. Glen Peters, a senior scientist at the Center for International Climate Research, said the decrease in greenhouse gas emissions reflected a fundamental shift in how China consumes energy. But he added: 'Even if Chinese emissions decline this year, I would not start saying they have peaked. I would want to see emissions trending down for a few years.' The US is the wild cardCarbon emissions have steadily declined in the U.S. over the past 15 years, thanks in large part to falling coal consumption. That was even true during President Donald Trump's first term, when almost a fifth of the country's coal capacity shut down. But major questions exist about whether the U.S. can continue to pull down climate emissions over time. U.S. coal generation was up 14 percent through the first half of 2025, thanks to robust power demand and higher natural gas prices. Trump has taken emergency action to keep some coal plants open while utilities including Arizona Public Service, a big power company in the West, are announcing plans to postpone future coal retirements in the face of rising electricity demand from data centers. Rob Jackson, an earth system scientist at Stanford University, said it is too early to draw conclusions from the 2025 data. But he said the broader economic trends taking place in the U.S. and China are already clear. 'It's fair to say that China and the U.S. are on different trajectories now,' he said. Chinese emissions are likely to drop in absolute and relative terms over the next five years thanks to the adoption of clean technologies. The U.S., meanwhile, is 'heading in the opposite direction,' he said. 'We're scaling back renewables. We're scaling back the adoption of EVs.' It's Wednesday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Benjamin Storrow. Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to bstorrow@ Today in POLITICO Energy's podcast: Chris Marquette breaks down the latest Republican moves on electric vehicle policies, including a potential federal fee on EVs. Power Centers This renaissance needs more fuelThe nuclear industry is in the midst of a comeback, but it will need a domestic fuel supply that for now is not guaranteed, Francisco 'A.J.' Camacho writes. For decades, the U.S. has relied on uranium shipments from Russia. Now, the Department of Energy has started to attract more startup companies to build a domestic supply chain. 'We are in the game, but we've got to get better at the game if we are ever going to be able to power our new nuclear fleet,' Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.), chair of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee, told A.J. Defending the plasticsThe U.S. and other fossil-fuel-producing nations are threatening to derail a global treaty to cut plastic production, Sara Schonhardt writes. Oil and gas feedstocks are a key ingredient of plastics, and curbing plastics is considered important to reducing the effects of climate change. But the U.S., Saudi Arabia and other countries with big oil and petrochemical producers see plastics as a significant driver of business. A State Department spokesperson told Sara in an email that the U.S. opposes 'impractical and ineffective global approaches,' referring to plastic production targets or bans and restrictions that 'would increase the costs of plastic products.' Countries are negotiating for a sixth time this week, widely seen as the last attempt to strike a deal. More than 100 countries are backing a treaty that would limit plastics production. Al Sharpton steps into the Sierra Club frayCivil rights leader Al Sharpton is warning of 'serious racial implications' of the Sierra Club's firing of its Executive Director Ben Jealous, Robin Bravender reports. Sharpton criticized the Sierra Club's move earlier this week to fire Jealous, a Black former civil rights leader. The green group said its board voted unanimously Monday to terminate Jealous' employment 'for cause following extensive evaluation of his conduct.' Jealous has retained attorneys at a civil rights and employment law firm and said in a statement Tuesday that he is fighting the decision. In Other News TikTok and protests: Nuclear reactors are having their pop culture moment. Fashion model Isabelle Boemeke posted pro-nuclear messages on social media. Later, she organized a push to keep California's Diablo Canyon plant operating. Unleash the projects: Some states are pushing to get renewable energy projects out the door before tax credits are shut off. Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. A melting glacier in Alaska is causing flooding and threatening residents of the state's capital, Juneau, for the third year in a row. The Department of Energy picked 10 small nuclear reactor developers to develop pilot projects and compete for safety design approvals. Texas House Republicans are urging U.S. energy regulators to expeditiously approve the Rio Grande liquefied natural gas export project in South Texas after previous regulatory and legal setbacks. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.
Newsweek
12 hours ago
- Newsweek
Anna Paulina Luna Tells Joe Rogan About Her UFO Experience in Air Force
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. During an interview with Joe Rogan on his eponymous Joe Rogan Experience podcast on Wednesday, U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna recounted her experience with an unidentified flying object (UFO) while serving in the Air Force. Newsweek reached out to Luna's office for comment via email. Why It Matters Luna, a Florida Republican, has been among lawmakers calling for greater transparency from the federal government, including on UFO investigations. Questions about UFOs have captivated the American public for decades. While many people may associate UFOs with aliens, the government has generally focused on whether the objects are from U.S. adversaries and pose national security risks in its investigations. The government has never confirmed the existence of extraterrestrial life, but theories about the possibility of life outside the planet endure. A YouGov poll from September 2024 found that a majority of Americans—53 percent—believe aliens definitely or probably exist. That poll surveyed 1,135 adults from September 17 to September 20, 2024, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percentage points. What To Know On the podcast, Luna, 36, told Rogan that during her time at Portland Air National Guard—where she worked as an airfield manager—she encountered an unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAP). In efforts to describe a broader range of unexplained sightings, the U.S. government shifted to the term UAP in lieu of UFO, as the latter refers specifically to flying objects. Luna said an airspace incursion occurred one day while she was working. But when she asked a pilot for more information, she said they told her they were not allowed to talk about it, she told Rogan. "No one really wanted to address it, and so from what I gathered, that had likely been a UAP," she said. "So that kind of was my perspective." She said she did not look at it with a "crazy lens of perspective" because she believes "you never know if we're the only ones out there, essentially." U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna attends a House Oversight Subcommittee hearing on April 1 in Washington, D.C. U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna attends a House Oversight Subcommittee hearing on April 1 in Washington, asked why she did not assume it could have been another country's military craft, but Luna said the way the pilot discussed it made her believe otherwise. "He didn't want to, from what I gather, get taken off flight status, and he was like, 'I really can't discuss it. We couldn't identify it, essentially.' And it had outperformed them," Luna said. The Florida Republican leads a House Oversight Committee on "disclosure," which focuses on government transparency on matters from UFOs to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. She said the task force was formed after pilots at Eglin Air Force Base came forward to accuse the Air Force of covering up instances of UAP incidents. The panel's investigations have indicated there is technology out there that "would rival what we know currently with physics" and that the U.S. does not have "the ability to reproduce" it. What People Are Saying Luna also said on the podcast: "Based on the photos that I've seen, I'm very confident that there's things out there that have not been created by mankind." The Department of Defense All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) wrote in a June 2024 report: "It is important to underscore that, to date, AARO has discovered no evidence of extraterrestrial beings, activity, or technology." What Happens Next Luna's task force will continue exploring questions about UAPs and other mysteries that have fueled concerns over government transparency.
