In 1994, declassified records revealed that the "weather balloon" cover story was used to hide Project Mogul en.wikipedia.org
Against this backdrop, the planet itself was also undergoing significant changes. The world was still reeling from the effects of climate change, which was just beginning to be understood. Natural disasters like hurricanes, droughts, and floods were making headlines, and the threat of global warming was starting to raise concerns. 1947 Earth --- Hot Scene Target