In this Fran Lab segment, engineer Fran Blanche describes how you could take down a balloon like the Chinese spy balloon in the most controlled manner possible. This video was done before the balloon was actually shot down Saturday and it appears that they didn't do it this way, perhaps because they already knew most everything they needed to know about it and so preserving it largely intact wasn't a high priority.
The video also includes a fun introduction. The balloon!!! The balloon!!!