  For much of February 2023, the world was in panic as repeated balloon-like
unidentified flying objects (UFOs) were reported over numerous countries by
governments that often responded with military action. As a result, most of
these craft either escaped or were destroyed, making any further observation of
them nearly impossible. These were not the first time balloon-like objects have
loomed over Earth, nor are they likely to be the last. This has prompted us to
push for a better understanding of UFOs. First we demonstrate that the
distribution of balloon incidents and other UFO reports are consistent with
being drawn from the same geographic distribution, and further that both of
these distributions are consistent with the areas of the Earth that feature the
jet stream. Second we show that there are more UFO sightings during meteor
showers, as we would expect if meteor showers, already a known source of
extraterrestrial material, are being used to provide some manner of distraction
to help alien craft enter the Earth's atmosphere without drawing undue
attention. These links between alleged balloon incidents, UFO reports, and
meteor showers establish a transport pipeline for alien craft from
interplanetary and possibly interstellar space to the Earth's surface.
