The Western zodiac, as we know it, has been out of sync with astronomical reality for approximately 2,000 years. The implication is striking: it’s very likely that you’ve identified with the wrong sign your whole life. And all because of the phenomenon of the Earth’s axial precession, which Hipparchus of Nicaea discovered more than 2,000 years ago. According to this phenomenon, our stellar perspective shifts by approximately one degree every 72 years.
And why is this relevant?
In astrology, the sun sign (your “zodiac sign”) is determined by the constellation in which the sun was located at the exact moment of your birth. Or, at least, that is what astrological texts have always said.
The sun sign refers to our identity and represents our vital energy and its natural expression. Therefore, the sun sign encapsulates our personality—or at least describes the most important part of it.
If, due to this axial precession, your sun sign is currently in a different constellation than the one indicated in tropical astrology, what is the point of knowing your sun sign?
What reference or description of your personality can an incorrect sun sign provide, given that at the moment of your birth the sun was shining, perhaps, through a different constellation? The current shift in horoscopes is estimated at about 24 zodiacal degrees.
And the same is true of the other two pillars of personality, the Moon and the Ascendant. They are likely displaced today as well. Therefore, how does tropical astrology intend to give us an accurate description of ourselves and our personalities? And, even more difficult, how does it intend to provide a correct description of our planetary transits and cycles?
The timings do not match, as the English astrologer Fagan noted at the end of the 19th century when he, together with the American astrologer Bradley, introduced the sidereal ayanamsa known as Fagan-Bradley.
WHAT DOES THIS PHENOMENON OF THE PRECESSION OF THE EQUINOXES MEAN?
As we mentioned, this discrepancy has the scientific name “axial precession.” The fact is that the Earth, in addition to its diurnal (daily) rotation on its axis and its annual rotation around the Sun, performs a precessional movement that involves a slow periodic shift of the axis itself: approximately one degree every 72 years. This movement, caused primarily by the Moon’s gravity, gives rise to the precession of the equinoxes, in which the Sun’s position on the ecliptic at the time of the vernal equinox, measured against the background of the fixed stars, gradually changes over time.
Imagine the Earth as a giant spinning top that, as it spins, also wobbles slightly. This wobble causes the Earth’s axis to trace a full circle in space every 26,000 years, gradually altering our perspective of the cosmos.
A millennia-old discovery
The most surprising thing is that this knowledge is not new. Hipparchus of Nicaea, a Greek astronomer from the 2nd century B.C., had already discovered precession more than 2,000 years ago. Hipparchus devised an ingenious method to solve the problem that the Sun is invisible in broad daylight: he took advantage of a lunar eclipse, when the Moon is directly on the opposite side of the Sun, and from the Moon’s position deduced where the Sun was located.
By comparing his measurements with earlier astronomical records, Hipparchus detected that our stellar perspective shifts by approximately one degree per century. His calculations, made with rudimentary instruments, were extraordinarily precise: modern measurements confirm their accuracy.
ASTROLOGICAL AGES
In astrology, an astrological era has typically been defined by the constellation or the superimposed sidereal zodiac in which the Sun actually appears at the spring equinox. This is the method Hipparchus appears to have applied around 127 B.C. when he calculated precession. Since each sign of the zodiac consists of 30 degrees, one might think that each astrological era lasts approximately 72 (years) × 30 (degrees) = about 2,160 years. This means that the Sun crosses the equator at the vernal equinox, moving backward relative to the fixed stars from one year to the next at a rate of one degree every seventy-two years, one constellation (on average) in about 2,148 years, and the full twelve signs in about 25,772 years—a period sometimes called a Platonic year*. However, the duration of the ages is decreasing over time, as the speed of precession is increasing. Therefore, no two ages have the same duration.
* Platonic year: In astronomy and astrology, this cycle represents a complete revolution of the equinoxes around the ecliptic, lasting approximately between 25,772 and 25,920 years.
As mentioned, there are different interpretations and calculations regarding the duration of the ages.
• Neil Mann’s interpretation: The Age of Pisces began around the year 1 AD and ends around the year 2150 AD.
• Heindel-Rosacruz’s interpretation: The Age of Pisces began around the year 498 AD and ends around the year 2654 AD.
The International Astronomical Union (IAU), as we will see below, considers that we will enter the constellation of Aquarius around the year 2600. Therefore, at present, the March equinox still occurs in the constellation of Pisces, having moved slowly from Aries due to the precession of the equinoxes.
WHAT IS AN AGE IN THE CONTEXT OF ASTROLOGY?
An era changes when the March equinox occurs in a different sign.
AGE OF PISCES: When the March equinox occurs in Pisces.
AGE OF AQUARIUS: When the March equinox occurs in Aquarius.
The Ages are related to sidereal astrology, since if we stick to conventional tropical astrology, the spring equinox always occurs at 0 degrees of Aries.
However, for actual astronomical purposes, the vernal point (March equinox) will enter the constellation of Aquarius around the year 2600, according to the divisions of the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
THE IAU AND NEW STANDARDS IN ASTROLOGY
Founded in 1919, the International Astronomical Union is the global body responsible for promoting astronomy, defining the names of celestial bodies, and establishing astronomical standards.
The International Astronomical Union has established the boundaries of the constellations since 1930, incorporating the actual lengths of the constellations with reference to the ecliptic:
Virgo is the largest constellation, spanning 44° of the zodiacal circle. Second in size is the constellation Pisces, which spans 38° of the zodiacal circle. Leo spans 36°, Aquarius 25°, and Capricorn 23°.
Sagittarius extends to 33°, Taurus to 37°, and Aries only reaches 25°. Libra is at 23°, Gemini at 28°, Cancer at about 20°, and Scorpio at only 7°, making this constellation the smallest in the zodiac.
The zodiacal circle has 360°, like any perfect circle. If we add up the measurements of the current constellations according to the IAU, we get a total of 339°. That’s a discrepancy of 21° when we do the math.
So where do these 21 degrees of difference fit into the zodiacal wheel?
Very simple. Here comes the lost constellation of Ophiuchus, which, together with the small constellation of Scorpio, adds up the degrees until reaching Sagittarius.
THE LOST CONSTELLATION: OPHIUCHUS
The controversy deepens with a fact that few people know: the Sun does not pass through just 12 constellations a year, but 13. The thirteenth, Ophiuchus (the Serpent-Bearer), has been systematically ignored by Western astrology.
As the New York Times explains, the Babylonians likely left it out so that their zodiacal system would align with the 12 months of the calendar. The irony is that, in practice, the Sun spends more time in Ophiuchus than in Scorpio.
And for these reasons, some modern sidereal astrologers are using these guidelines to establish a new zodiac with different durations for each sun sign based on the actual durations of the constellations in the sky.
A new zodiac that, by including the 13th constellation, has established a new sign—the sign of Ophiuchus—within the traditional zodiacal wheel. Specifically, we have taken this chart from the website “masteringthezodiac” of sidereal astrologer Athen Chimenti.
BOUNDARIES OF THE CONSTELLATIONS AND ZODIACAL SIGNS ACCORDING TO DIFFERENT MODELS OF ASTROLOGY
THE PROBLEM OF UNEQUAL CONSTELLATIONS
The traditional zodiac design, in which the sky was divided into 12 perfectly equal segments of 30 degrees each—just as the ancient Babylonians did—presents a design problem today.
What do astrologers say?
The response from the astrology community has been swift and unanimous. “Modern Western tropical astrology is not based on constellations, but on the seasons,” explained astrologer Aliza Kelly on Instagram, as reported by People magazine.
This claim is certainly possible, but then what about the idea that our personality is defined by the sign rising on the horizon at the moment of our birth?
If our sign, due to the phenomenon of the precession of the equinoxes that we explained, does not correspond to reality, what is the point of this concept of astrology?
What should we believe?
Personally, we had been using sidereal calculations based on the Fagan-Bradley ayanamsa or the Lahiri Vedic ayanamsa, which are nearly identical. You will find ephemerides for both on the astro-dienst website. As for the zodiacal wheel, we had adopted the Babylonian approach of dividing the constellations into equal 30° segments to facilitate the calculation of aspects and the interpretation derived from them.
However, recently, while attempting to correctly interpret some natal charts that have come to us, we have found that the Midpoint system’s description and interpretation of them aligns much more closely with the actual calculations of the constellations as they currently appear in the sky.
True sidereal astrology maintains the link between us and the sky, using the stars exactly as they are in reality. It is a system we have been using for far longer than the last 2,000 years.
Thanks to technology, we can now view the visible sky in the form of an astrological chart. This can be seen, for example, in a program like https://theskylive.com
Since the sky is open to interpretation, this is why there are dozens of sidereal systems. The sidereal astrological system of the midpoint created by Athen Chimenti in “masteringthezodiac” uses the actual size of the constellations, which requires the inclusion of a 13th sign, Ophiuchus, occupying a portion of the spectrum previously occupied solely by the sign of Scorpio.
Since this system conforms to the actual size of the constellations, it does not use 30-degree zodiac signs, but rather signs adapted to the actual size of the constellations, just like the IAU, with the difference that the IAU’s boundaries are designed for astronomy, not astrology. The IAU boundaries do not refer to the ecliptic (the path of the Sun and the planets). The Midpoint Method solves this by establishing the sizes of the zodiac signs in relation to the ecliptic. It is designed for astrology.
Therefore, to observe the visible sky, it is better to use this Midpoint system. The IAU boundaries do not place the Sun, Moon, and planets in the correct astrological signs. This can be verified using a planetarium such as Stellarium.