February 4, 2023 (Saturday)
Armed conflicts and attacks
- High-altitude object events in 2023
- 2023 Chinese balloon incident
- The Federal Aviation Administration closes the airspace off the east coast of the United States, and suspends arrivals at Myrtle Beach International Airport, Charleston International Airport, and Wilmington International Airport after President Joe Biden orders the high-altitude balloon to be shot down over the Atlantic Ocean. (Euro Weekly News)
- The high-altitude balloon is shot down by a United States Air Force F-22 Raptor over the Atlantic Ocean at 2:39 PM EST. An operation to collect the remnants of the balloon in U.S. territorial waters is currently underway. It is the first time that an aircraft has been shot down in the United States since World War II. (AP) (CNN)
- 2023 Chinese balloon incident
Disasters and accidents
- At least 16 people are killed and 66 others are injured in a multiple-vehicle collision along a highway in Changsha, Hunan, China. (AFP via The Straits Times)
- Nine sailors are missing after their fishing vessel capsizes off the coast of Sinan County, South Jeolla Province, South Korea. President Yoon Suk-yeol has deployed the coast guard to conduct an air-sea rescue for the missing people. (AFP via Oman Daily Observer)
- Two people are killed and three others are injured by an avalanche in Raghistan District, Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan. (5DariyaNews)
Health and environment
- February 2023 North American cold wave
- Mount Washington in New Hampshire, United States, records the lowest wind chill temperature in the country at −108 °F (−78 °C). (AFP via Manila Bulletin)