Stargazing Has anyone else noticed Arcturus moving eratically lately?

[George S]

For several nights since early May I have looked up at Arcturus and it appears to move erratically like a drone. The first time I noticed it, I thought I was seeing a UFO so I ran and got my wife. We both took phone video and confirmed that we were observing the same thing. We also noted that it is moving in relation to other stars that are stationary. I am in eastern PA so at the observation time 10:00PM to 1:30AM it is very high in the sky. Anyone else seeing this?

 

[rod]

FYI, I have viewed Arcturus multiple times in May using my 90-mm refractor telescope and 10-inch Newtonian, mostly for testing the optics and focusing, also as a guide star to hop into M3 globular cluster using my 10-inch. What you describe, I never observed. I was out in MD from 2100-2400 EDT, 04-May, 11-May, and 25-May according to my stargazing log.

 

[frankie22]

r u looking at a planet

 

[rod]

FYI, I viewed Venus, Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter in May multiple times. 04-May, 07-May, 12-May, 13-May, and 31-May. My telescope views ranged from 40x to 200x views. Saturn started retrograding on 11-May, Jupiter started retrograde on 14-May. As the question stated about Arcturus, "appears to move erratically like a drone"

Concerning my stargazing log observations of planets and stars, nothing like this behavior I observe using my binoculars, 90-mm refractor telescope, and 10-inch Newtonian telescope when stargazing.