General, we've never seen an object like this gain entry into our airspace before.

How did that happen?

That's an excellent question, Katie.

The balloon was somehow able to get past our West Coast anti-balloon defense system, the Seattle Space Needle.

But once it was here, we were able to keep an eye on it with our sophisticated tracking

technology of going like this.

Our thanks to Saturday Night Live there.

There are rising diplomatic tensions, however, between the United States and China after a

White House decision

to shoot down that massive spy balloon, we'll walk through what happened and take a look

at the growing fallout. Plus, a powerful earthquake leaves hundreds of people dead in Turkey

and Syria. This morning, rescue crews are searching through the rubble for any survivors.

And heading into 2024, Democrats have approved a new primary calendar,

reshaping the way the party picks its presidential nominees,

but there are still some potential challenges ahead.

Thank you. head. Good morning and welcome to way too early on this Monday, February 6th. I'm Jonathan Lemire. Thanks for starting your day and week with us. We'll begin with the latest on that Chinese spy balloon

and rising tensions with Beijing over the Biden administration's decision to shoot it down.

A senior defense official tells NBC news that the Pentagon has been analyzing the remnants of the

balloon over the past few days after it was shot down off the coast of South Carolina

on Saturday. According to the Defense Department, the balloon first entered U.S. airspace

on January 28th. It then briefly crossed into Canada before reentering U.S. territory on

Tuesday around Idaho, and then floating across the Midwest, eventually spotted

...