Team GO Rocket have descended upon the Pokémon Go overworld using hot air balloons, meaning players now have to defend PokéStops against the waves of Grunts that are trying to steal players’ Pokémon.
But because the balloons aren’t always floating around, there is a type of spawn rotation that decides when and where Team GO Rocket will appear on your map.
Based on information within the game’s files and comparisons between players, the typical spawn time for GO Rocket balloons seems to run on a six-hour rotation. You can easily see if a balloon has spawned for you by zooming the screen out on the overworld to get an overhead view.
This timing was only confirmed for the original release of the Rocket balloons, however. Now that Pokémon Go Fest 2020’s Battle Challenge week is live, the spawn rates have been drastically increased because players need to defeat GO Rocket Grunts and some of the leaders to complete the challenge tasks.
This means that between July 10 to 15, you can expect to see balloons appearing in three-hour intervals, but it will reset back to six hours once the event is over.
If you want to battle on of Team GO Rocket’s three leaders in the balloons, Sierra, Cliff, or Arlo, you will need to equip a Rocket Radar once you have defeated enough Grunts.
Giovanni will also spawn in a balloon if you have a Super Rocket Radar equipped, and if you defeat him, you will have a chance at capturing a Shadow Suicune. Though be warned, his decoy Grunts will also be spawning, so you might be waiting for a while.
None of these spawn timings affect the Meowth balloon that Jessie and James are flying around in, because that is a separate event entirely.
