The constellation is referred to as the one that winds in loops in Marcus Manilius’ astrological poem: “However, the serpent turns around and returns, bending its flexible neck as the other’s hands go over the uncoiling coils. Since they are fighting on equal grounds with equal power, the battle will go on forever “. In a later section of his poem, he claims that Ophiuchus’ astrological influence grants affinity with snakes and immunity to poisons when the constellation is in its rising phase “For those born under him, he makes serpent shapes harmless. They will kiss these venomous monsters and receive snakes within the folds of their flowing robes without suffering any harm “. Ras Alhague (Ophiuchi), “the bright star of Ophiuchus,” was connected to doctors, healers, and physicians by a later fourth-century astrologer known as Anonymous of 379. This correlation may have been made because to the connection between poisons and medications.
Since at least the 1970s, claims that there are “13 astrological signs” because “the Sun is in the sign of Ophiuchus” between November 30 and December 18 have been made based on the 1930 IAU constellation borders.
Ophiuchus (December 6 to December 31) and Cetus (May 12 to June 6) were added as new signs in Steven Schmidt’s Astrology 14 in 1970, which promoted a 14-sign zodiac.
Walter Berg adopted the concept inside sidereal astrology in the 20th century and wrote a book titled The 13 Signs of the Zodiac (1995).
The idea of “the 13th zodiac sign Ophiuchus” made headlines in the popular news, and it was reiterated in a statement made by Parke Kunkle, an astronomer at the Minnesota Planetarium Society, in January 2011.
In This Article...
Ophiuchus is he a man?
Northwest of the Milky Way’s nucleus, between Aquila, Serpens, Scorpius, Sagittarius, and Hercules, is Ophiuchus. Between Sagittarius to the east and Scorpius to the west is where the southern portion is located. It is most noticeable in the summer in the northern hemisphere. It stands against Orion. In the image of Ophiuchus, a man holding a serpent, Serpens Caput and Serpens Cauda are separated from the Serpens constellation by the man’s body. Ophiuchus is an equatorial constellation having most of its surface in the southern hemisphere. Its brightest star, Rasalhague, is located at approximately +12 30 declination close to Ophiuchus’ northern boundary. The constellation reaches 30 declination in the south. Ophiuchus contains portions of the ecliptic that are south of 20 declination.
Ophiuchus: a fire sign or not?
Although neither of the official astrological systems recognizes Ophiuchus as a sign, certain sidereal astrologers might include it in their chart analysis. The constellation, which is a representation of a serpent-bearer, is located between the early and late degrees of the mutable fire sign Sagittarius and the fixed water sign Scorpio.
Ophiuchus pronunciation?
Ophiuchus is pronounced /fijuks/ in accordance with the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). Ophiuchus is pronounced “oh-FEW-kuss” in simple old English.
Ophiuchusis he a god?
The Serpent Bearer is the constellation Ophiuchus. From June to October, this enormous constellation can be viewed in the night sky. Despite the majority of the stars being faint, Ophiuchus is easy to find due to its teapot form.
Three separate figures combine to form the constellation. In his left hand, Ophiuchus is carrying Serpens Caput, and in his right, Serpens Cauda. He is north of Scorpius and south of Hercules.
In Greek mythology, Ophiuchus stands in for Asclepius, the god of medicine. Apollo’s son Asclepius was instructed by the centaur Chiron. Hades was concerned when he discovered how to raise the dead. The underworld god urged Zeus to slay the medicine god on his brother’s behalf. Zeus did kill him by striking him, but in his honor, he later erected the Asclepius statue in the sky.
This constellation doesn’t have many bright stars, but it does have one that is fairly unusual. Recurrent novae are the kind of stars that make up RS Ophiuchi. These odd things are dull for extended periods of time before abruptly becoming bright. Ras Alhague, the head of the snake bearer, is the brightest star.
There are several celestial objects in Ophiuchus. The constellation has several clusters and one nebula.
Why are Ophiuchus so uncommon?
Ophiuchus, the serpent carrier, is one of the largest constellations in the sky but is also one of the least well-known. Even though it is big and noticeable in the summer sky, it is rarely noticed since it lacks brilliant stars. Brighter and more well-known constellations surround Ophiuchus.
Is Ophiuchus an uncommon species?
Aries and Sagittarius, both fire signs, are the second and third most uncommon zodiac signs, respectively, according to Stardust.
Stardust claims that Aries is the first sign of the zodiac and that this sign is known for having an inspirational jolt that “gets everyone going and moving. The third-rarest sign of the zodiac, Sagittarius, “falls during the autumn season and are renowned to be adventurous and free-spirited,” according to Stardust.
What makes Ophiuchus significant?
Ophiuchus, like the other constellations of the Zodiac, was first noted by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the second century. Its name is Latin for “serpent carrier.”
Ophiuchus is frequently linked to therapeutic imagery since the snake is frequently associated with physicians. The constellation was linked to Asclepius by the Romans, who discovered the key to immortality by observing one serpent heal another serpent with medicinal plants. Because he didn’t want everyone to be eternal, Zeus struck Asclepius with a lightning bolt, but later rewarded him for his good works by granting him a place in the sky.
The god Nirah, who was occasionally pictured with a human upper body and serpentine legs, was connected to the constellation by the Babylonians.
In astrology, which is not a science, Ophiuchus is the 13th sign of the zodiac and represents those who were born between November 30 and December 17.
How can I determine if I am an Ophiuchus?
These signals are not accurately calibrated, though. Using a celestial planisphere, we can see that from November 30 to December 18, the Sun is located in Ophiuchus, sometimes known as the serpent bearer or snake charmer, one of those lesser-known constellations. Ophiuchus is the zodiac sign for people who were born between these dates.
We will see that little aligns with the zodiacal calendar to which we are accustomed according to horoscopes if we continue to observe the link between the location of the Sun and the background of stars:
Based on the boundaries between constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in 1930, the following table depicts the actual zodiacal signs.
Why does Ophiuchus not appear in the horoscope as a zodiacal constellation? Why are the dates different? The Sun travelled across each of the zodiacal constellations on different dates than it does today, or roughly four weeks earlier, when the horoscope was first created 2,500 years ago in ancient Babylon.
The Sun now enters Aries on April 19 of every year, according to modern astronomers’ calculations. The Sun, however, lags behind a clock by about a quarter of an hour annually because to the Earth’s axial precession. This delay has been building up over many centuries, and today it is over a month after when the Babylonians recorded it and when the horoscopes say it should.
The horoscope for each individual would then be considered to correlate to the sign that comes before the one that their modern horoscope represents. But this is also untrue. The Sun only spends a week crossing Scorpio and a month and a half in Virgo; these times of passage are identical to those of 2,500 years ago and greatly differ from the Babylonian astrologers’ arbitrary division of one month for each sign of the horoscope, who decided to omit Ophiuchus and maintain a rounder number of 12 signs, as in the 12-month calendar.
By using that calendar, Babylonian astrologers could forecast when summer would arrive or when it would be best to reap their crops. Because of the social influence this gave them, they began to broaden their forecasts to include things like war outcomes or a person’s characteristics based on their zodiac sign.
What is the spirit animal of Ophiuchus?
You were born between November 30 and December 18, right?
If so, your birthdate likely coincides with the sun crossing in front of Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer.
I nearly hear someone say right now:
You are 100 percent correct. This is due to Ophiuchus being a constellation rather than a zodiac sign. Continue reading to learn more about the differences between astrological signs and astronomical constellations, how to find Ophiuchus, when and where to look for it, some of the deep-sky gems it holds, as well as its mythology and science.
Signs versus constellations
The Serpent Bearer is seen in the south to southwest on August and September evenings from latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere. Ophiuchus is higher overhead in the Southern Hemisphere. The bright red star Antares, the brightest star in the Scorpion constellation, is also close by.
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) drew the official boundaries for each of the 88 constellations in the 1930s. Rasalhague, the brightest star in Ophiuchus, and Antares, the brightest star in Scorpius, are identified in the image below of the constellation Ophiuchus. Despite not being as bright as Antares, the star that represents the Scorpion’s beating heart, Rasalhague denotes the head of Ophiuchus.
Ophiuchus is poor. Despite the fact that the ecliptic also crosses him, no one ever claims him as their birth sign. After all, the zodiacal belt spans a total of 16 degrees in breadth and extends about 8 degrees north and south of the ecliptic. Additionally, along this area in our sky, the constellations are not properly spaced out. All readers of online astrological guidance are aware with the signs of the zodiac. There are 12 well-known zodiac signs, including Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, and others. No Ophiuchus, though.
However, the moon and planets do frequently move within Ophiuchus’ borders. The sun also does this. From roughly November 30 to December 18 of every year, the sun is in front of Ophiuchus.
Around November 21, or anytime the sun is precisely 30 degrees west of the December solstice point, the sun is said to enter the sign of Sagittarius. On the solstice of December 21, the sun then moves into the sign of Capricorn. In spite of the sun beaming in front of the constellation Ophiuchus from November 30 to December 18, the sun moves through the sign of Sagittarius during the month before and up to the December solstice.
By the way, it takes around 72 years for the December solstice point to travel one degree westward in front of the zodiacal constellations or backdrop stars. This indicates that by the year 2269, the December solstice point will eventually enter the constellation of Ophiuchus.
When and where to locate Ophiuchus
Summer in the Northern Hemisphere is the ideal season to view Ophiuchus (Southern Hemisphere winter). This constellation can be seen high in the southern sky at dusk and early evening from the Northern Hemisphere in late July and early August. On autumnal evenings in the Northern Hemisphere, it can be visible in the southwest sky.
The region of the sky north of the constellation Scorpius the Scorpion and south of the constellation Hercules the Hero is occupied by this relatively big constellation. Try star-hopping to Ophiuchus from this crimson gem of a star if you are familiar with Antares, the brightest star in Scorpius. The star Rasalhague designates the head of Ophiuchus (Alpha Ophiuchi).
In mythology and in the sky, Ophiuchus is associated with the Serpent constellation.
This constellation, which depicts a large man holding a snake, may be visible if your sky is clear and dark.
The Greek words for serpent and holding are the origin of the name Ophiuchus.
Deep-sky objects in Ophiuchus
Take your binoculars on a moonless night and use them to scan Ophiuchus, which is close to the Milky Way’s band and offers numerous deep-sky wonders. For instance, Ophiuchus features a large number of globular clusters. According to the accompanying figure, M10 and M12 are the two globular clusters that are the most straightforward to see with common binoculars. When viewed via a telescope, these globular clusters start to take on the appearance of feeble puffs of light that they appear to be through binoculars. They are enormous stellar cities with a diameter of 100300 light years that are seething with tens of thousands of stars.
The Pipe Nebula, a huge interstellar cloud of gas and dust that spans roughly 7 degrees of sky, is another prominent deep-sky favorite. That is around the width of three to four fingers when held at arm’s length. This dark nebula can be seen with the unassisted eye in a pitch-black, clear sky at a distance of 600700 light-years in southern Ophiuchus. The Pipe Nebula is located directly east of Antares and directly north of Shaula and Lesath. The above graphic displays these two stars but not the Pipe Nebula.
Ophiuchus in myth and star lore
Ophiuchus is thought to be the sky god Asclepius, the Greek deity of medicine and physicians. He is consistently shown clutching a large serpent or snake. And a snake’s venom can either kill or heal, depending on how it is applied. According to legend, Asclepius created a healing elixir with the venom of Serpens the Serpent, Gorgon’s blood, and an unidentified herb. Up until Pluto, the god of the underworld, made a request to the ruler of the gods, this elixir granted people access to immortality. Zeus was prompted to reevaluate the effects of the death of death by Pluto.
We don’t really understand Pluto’s appeal. Maybe what he meant to say was that no mortal can have one without the other and that nothing that never lives never dies. The inherent moral of the narrative may have been best summed up by Sophocles who said:
Better to pass away and experience the never-ending sleep than to continue living when the soul has passed away.
The poet T.S. Eliot may have repeated the idea of the eternal story in his Four Quartets:
We pass away with the dead:
The dead are born with us:
In any case, Asclepius was banished from Earth and placed in the starry heavens by Zeus, who also allegedly seized the potion. The World Health Organization’s and other medical organizations’ Staff of Asclepius insignia pays homage to this tale and mirrors the impressive celestial form of the constellation Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer.
Ophiuchus in history and science
Within our own Milky Way galaxy, a supernova explosion of a star has not been observed in more over 400 years. However, a supernova known as Kepler’s Supernova erupted in the year 1604, being visible to the human eye for 18 months. It glowed not too distant from the Pipe Nebula in southern Ophiuchus.
Tycho’s supernova in Cassiopeia in 1572 was followed closely by Kepler’s supernova in 1604. The European intelligentsia, which strongly believed in the Aristotelian idea of an unchangeable world outside the circle of the moon, was shocked by these supernovae. Tycho Brahe measured the parallax of the supernova in 1572, establishing that it was not an atmospheric occurrence. The supernova actually shined well beyond the moon’s orbit. Shortly after, Kepler’s Supernova in 1604 seemed to make the argument crystal clear once more.
Tycho Brahe also discovered that a comet was further away than the moon when he estimated its distance in 1577. The idea of Aristotle’s unchangeable universe was again put to the test by Tycho, who refuted the Aristotelians’ desire to think that comets were gases burning in the atmosphere.
Conclusion: Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer, is a fictitious member of the zodiac because the sun passes through its borders for about two weeks out of every year. Find out how to find Ophiuchus and the differences between astrological signs and astronomy constellations.