SIGHTING: BIG RAPIDS, MICHIGAN (UNITED STATES)

Witness Testimony

"1. I was looking outside both the nights of November 8 and November 9, 2015 at approximately 7:00 to 7:30 p.m.2. I first noticed the object because of it's unusually bright light in that direction for any stars, then I observed it moving around a bit.3. Not sure what it was at first -- maybe a helicopter or plane way in the distance, yet it's variable movement did not appear to be the typical maneuvers of those aircraft, yet there was no sound, either. My other thought is that this could be a privately-owned drone. However, to my knowledge, the battery packs don't last the duration that I observed it both nights. 4. The object over time followed the general stars in the night sky. However, it would hover in the same direction I spotted it, then swerve to the left and right by a 1-3 degrees at most (if you were to compare it to the distance between celestial objects.) It would also go up and down slightly, but somewhat less than the left-to-right movement. 5. It just really made me wonder what it could be. It could possibly be a simple private drone, although it appeared to be way above the 500-ft. limit the FAA recently mandated. Secondly, why would someone be flying it at night? Trying to put myself in someone's shoes, maybe it was to capture footage of the Taurid meteor shower? I tried waiting around for a terminal drop in the object to corroborate a dead or draining battery power. I did not observe this on either night. Other than that, I rather appreciate the notion that we do not know the answers to everything.6. Simply put, I got cold and went inside. I figured that if it's clear tonight (which it is), I'll see if it was out there again -- and it was!"