The 12 zodiacal signs that make up a horoscope are closely related to how the Earth travels through space. The constellations that outline the course the sun appears to take throughout the year are where we get these signs from. You might believe that the dates in a horoscope match up with the times the sun transits each constellation. However, because astrology and astronomy employ different systems, they frequently do not. The zodiac is also more complex than you might think when you look closely at how the Earth, the sun, and the stars move!
In This Article...
The sun’s motion through the constellations
The sun appears to pass in front of many constellations as Earth revolves the sun. The position of the sun with relation to the far-off background stars drifts in an easterly direction from day to day, much how the moon appears in a slightly different spot in the sky each night. The sun isn’t actually moving, though. Its apparent movement is purely an illusion brought on by Earth’s rotation around our star.
The sun appears to pass in front of or “in” various constellations throughout the course of a year. The sun is in Gemini one month and Cancer the following. The sun enters a specific astrological sign on the dates specified in the newspaper’s horoscope. For instance, the Aries sign is designated for the period from March 21 to April 19. The constellation the sun was in on the day you were born is not always indicated by your astrological sign.
Why the zodiac constellations don’t always align with astrological signs
We need to know a little bit more about the motion of the Earth in order to comprehend why constellations no longer line up with the respective signs. We must also discuss how we measure time.
Especially if we insist on utilizing the sun and stars as our only points of reference, time is a fiendishly challenging concept to define. For better or worse, the seasons influence our calendar. The day the sun appears at its most northern position in the sky is June 21, which is roughly the date of the summer solstice north of the equator and the winter solstice to the south. The North Pole is most inclined toward the sun on the June solstice.
This is exacerbated by the fact that, in relation to the background stars, the North Pole is not constantly pointed in the same direction. The earth rotates like a top. The Earth also sways like a top! The North Pole draws a circle on the celestial sphere as a result of the Earth’s rotation. The wobble is relatively gradual, taking 26,000 years to complete one full rotation. However, as time passes, the effect grows.
The orientation of the Earth’s axis drifts just slightly during one orbit around the sun. This indicates that a very little amount of change also occurs in the location along our orbit when the solstice occurs. Actually, the solstice happens around 20 minutes sooner than one full trip in front of the stars in the background!
Our drifting calendars
The fact that we base our calendar on the solstices and equinoxesas do astrologersmeans that the Earth doesn’t truly complete one orbit in a year. Actually, the seasonal or tropical year lasts just a little bit less than one complete orbit (sidereal year). Thus, every year, the sun’s position in relation to the stars on any particular day changes. For instance, June 21 wanders a minuscule amount.
The sun, however, will be located in a completely other constellation if you wait around 2,000 years!
Two thousand years ago, the sun was almost exactly halfway between Gemini and Cancer on the June solstice. On the June solstice fourteen years ago, the sun was positioned halfway between Gemini and Taurus. The June solstice point will move from the constellation Taurus into the constellation Aries in the year 4609.
When the modern Western zodiac was established some 2,000 years ago, the signs were roughly in alignment with the respective constellations. However, throughout the millennia, the Earth’s axis’ gradual wobble has led the solstice and equinox positions to move about 30 degrees westward in relation to the constellations. Signs and constellations are currently around one month away. They won’t be for around another two thousand years, or about two months.
Modern constellations and the zodiac
The fact that the constellations are not all the same size and shape, unlike the astrological signs, further complicates matters. Most of the time, there is no physical connection between the stars that make up a constellation. They are simply based on the patterns that our ancestors observed while looking up at the sky and attempting to make sense of it all.
The International Astronomical Union officially recognized the constellations as parts of the sky, rather than just as collections of stars, in 1930. They established the borders we use today with this. These contemporary constellations have their origins in those made popular by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the second century CE. He then took them from antiquated Babylonian writings. Numerous tribes have reported seeing distinctive sky patterns. Although most cultures don’t, several do (Orion is one notable exception).
There are actually 13 constellations along the sun’s course with the present borders. Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer, which is located between Sagittarius and Scorpius, is the additional sign that isn’t mentioned in any horoscope. The solstices and equinoxes move westward in relation to the constellations or background stars, but the signs remain stable in relation to them.
The zodiac is a great tool for better understanding the motions of the sun, the Earth, and even the cultures that have come and gone on our tiny planet, even though it may not be a great predictor of love, fortune, or health. The constellations along the route of the sun in the sky gave rise to the zodiac signs, which track the orbit and wobble of Earth and serve as a reminder of the humble beginnings of astronomy.
The word “zodiac” is often associated with astrology, although it also has a respected role in astronomy. The 12 constellations that line the sun’s yearly course across the sky make up the zodiac.
Why are horoscope signs so wrong?
But the precession of the Earth’s rotational axis, which causes astrological signs to diverge from the zodiac, is the fundamental cause. The Earth’s equator gently bulges due to its rotation, much like how a skater’s skirt fanned out as she spins. The Earth quakes like a top because to the gravitational force of the Moon and Sun on the bulge. Over a period of 25,800 years, the wobble makes the Earth’s axisthe line around which it rotatesswing slowly in a circle.
The constellations appear to slide to the east by around a degree per human lifetime, changing how the zodiac appears to us on Earth. Hipparchus of Nicaea made the slow discovery of precession with the naked eye in about 150 B.C.
The vernal equinox, or the first day of spring, was in Aries in ancient times. It entered Pisces due to precession approximately 100 B.C., remained there until 2700 A.D., when it will enter Aquarius, and so on. It will finally return to Aries and the cycle will start all over again in 25,800 years.
Astrology may be entertaining as a game with its predictions of destiny and personality. The topic, however, has no scientific foundation. What Monopoly is to the real estate market, science is to the subject.
Astrology draws attention away from the planets’ very real influences, particularly their gravitational interactions, which actually modify the sizes, shapes, and tilts of their orbits. Past ice eras on Earth were probably brought on by such shifts. Direct impacts between Earth and celestial bodies can result in extremely quick changes, as was the case 66 million years ago when an asteroid hit the Yucatan Peninsula and had global consequences, including the extinction of dinosaurs and the emergence of mammals.
Astrological prophecies will lead you nowhere at all, but astronomical studies will eventually enable the prediction of such events.
Why don’t I behave like my astrological sign?
Even while it’s common for people born on the border of two signs to take on characteristics from the other, they are either one or the other. Therefore, it would be worthwhile to check with an astro to see where you actually land if you were born on the day the sun is meant to enter a new astrological season.
Parental influence
According to Dr. Williams, it is possible for someone to not be in alignment with their zodiac sign if they were raised by powerful people who were born under a different sign. This effectively prevents them from achieving the integration of their solar personality with their true selves. “For instance, a Pisces child can have Virgo and Sagittarius parents. Self-misalignment and disorientation may result from this parenting setup.”
Why is Leo the sign of the lion?
As beautiful and imposing as the Lion that represents their sign, Leos are the innate leaders of the zodiac. Leos are really happy and generous with their appeal and gifts. They are ferociously proud and self-assured. Rather than taking the lead at home, work, and play, they choose to enjoy and live life to the fullest.
Zodiac signs: fact or fiction?
Astrology: Is it true? Although reading horoscopes is a well-liked past time, is there any scientific evidence that it has any significance?
When you are lured by a familiar interruption and your willpower wanes, problems may result.
Up to 70 million Americans consult their horoscopes every day. At least that is what the American Federation of Astrologers claims. A Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life research conducted twenty years ago found that 25% of Americans thought that the positions of the stars and planets had an impact on our daily life. According to the General Social Survey from 2012, 34% of Americans asked think astrology is “extremely” or “kind of” scientific. The percentage of those who think astrology is “not at all scientific” has decreased from two-thirds to roughly one-half.
The concept that astronomical phenomena, such as the stars above when you were born or the fact that Mercury is in retrograde, have the ability to affect the daily happenings in our lives and our personality traits is commonly referred to as astrology. The study of astronomy, which is the scientific study of celestial objects, space, and the mechanics of the cosmos, is obviously very different from this.
An element of astrology in particular that is gaining popularity is the ability to predict one’s future or provide advise on daily actions through horoscopes. Horoscope pages saw a 150 percent spike in hits in 2017 compared to 2016, according to publications like The Cut.
It’s obvious that many individuals are looking for methods of star interpretation. Understanding the locations of the stars, the basis of astrology, seems to be a sufficiently scientific endeavor. But can science support the idea that astrology has an impact on our personalities and our lives?
But since I have you for the remaining five minutes of this six-minute-or-so podcast, let’s examine the precise methods by which astrology has been put to the test.
The zodiac was made by who?
NASA claims that the Babylonians already had a 12-month calendar based on the moon phases when they formed the zodiac. Despite the fact that they found 13 constellations that make up the zodiac, they chose to exclude one so the signs would more closely coincide with their 12-month calendar.
Before you Aries, Cancers, and Leos start making fun of your new Ophiuchus friends, keep in mind that the addition of this 13th constellation slightly changes the time frame for each zodiac sign. As a result, even though I have loved my life as a textbook Pisces, I have discovered through research that I am now an Aquarius. (Gasp!)
Even though this knowledge dates back 3,000 years, it was just rediscovered when NASA published some scientific facts about how the Earth’s axis has changed and no longer points precisely in the same direction as it previously did, which impacts how long each constellation is visible in the night sky.
The astrology community (and Twitter) went crazy, and many ardent supporters believed NASA “added a sign to the zodiac, upending the familiar and beloved signs. However, that is untrue. An astrological sign was not added by NASA. Their Tumblr blog post states that they “I merely performed the math. If anyone is to be held accountable, it should be the ancient Babylonians for omitting Ophiuchus in the first place.
The creators of zodiac signs?
Although they aren’t exactly proportionate in size or shape, the constellations that correspond to the 12 astrological signs each take up one-twelfth of this belt in theory. Since the Babylonians’ initial mapping of the zodiac sign system around 450 BCE, they have also moved around geographically.
What Zodiac sign is the most intelligent?
Aquarius is the zodiac sign that is considered to be the smartest. Uranus, the planet of invention, creativity, and higher consciousness, is in charge of them. Because of this, this air sign does more with the information than just absorb it and spit it back out: they comprehend, grasp, and build upon it. Kovach describes them as “innovative, unconventional, and frequently ahead of their time.” They are aware of how emerging trends operate and may have a clearer view of the future than others.