THE ASTROSCROLL GUIDE
Every term you meet in a birth chart, explained in a few sentences.
Air signs are the three zodiac signs that belong to the element air: Gemini, Libra and Aquarius. Astrologers link them to thinking, talking and connecting people and ideas. Planets in air signs are read as curious and sociable, with a need for exchange and some room to think. How strong air is in your chart depends on all your planets, not only on your Sun. It describes a tendency, not a fixed trait.
See also: Element, Fire signs, Water signs
Angles are the four key points of a birth chart: the Ascendant (Rising sign), the Descendant opposite it, the Midheaven (MC) and the IC. Together they form two axes. In most house systems they mark the start of the 1st, 7th, 10th and 4th house, and they are read as the most sensitive points of a chart. Planets close to an angle are read as especially noticeable. All four need an exact birth time and place.
The twelve houses and four angles →
See also: Ascendant (Rising sign), Descendant, Midheaven (MC)
The Ascendant, also called the Rising sign, is the zodiac sign that was rising on the eastern horizon at the moment you were born. It marks the start of the first house and changes about every two hours, so it can only be found with your birth time and place. Astrologers read it as the way you meet the world: your first impression, your manner and how you tend to start things.
How to find your Rising sign →
See also: Birth time, Chart ruler, Descendant
An aspect is the angle between two points in a birth chart, measured in degrees along the zodiac. The five major aspects are the conjunction (0°), sextile (60°), square (90°), trine (120°) and opposition (180°). Astrologers read an aspect as the way two planets work together: sextiles and trines as easy, squares and oppositions as tense, the conjunction as a blend. Tense does not mean bad; it is read as friction that gets things moving.
The five major aspects explained →
See also: Conjunction, Orb, Square
Astrology is a symbolic language that reads the positions of the Sun, the Moon and the planets at a certain moment as a picture of character and timing. It is not a science and not proven; the science of the sky is astronomy. Western astrology works with the tropical zodiac, twelve signs, twelve houses and the angles between the planets. Used well, it is a tool for self-reflection: it describes tendencies and does not predict events.
Astrology and astronomy: the difference →
See also: Birth chart (natal chart), Horoscope, Zodiac
A birth chart (natal chart) is a calculated map of the sky for the exact time and place of your birth. It shows the Sun, the Moon and the planets in the twelve signs and the twelve houses, and the angles between them. Astrologers read it as a picture of character and tendencies, a tool for self-reflection, not a prediction. Without a birth time the chart still works, but it leaves out the Rising sign and the houses.
See also: Natal, Horoscope, Birth time
Birth time is the clock time at which you were born, as exact as possible. A chart needs it for the Rising sign, the houses and the Midheaven, because the Rising point moves about one degree every four minutes. Without it, the signs of the Sun and the planets can usually still be calculated, while the Rising sign and the houses are left out. The most reliable source is the birth register or a full birth certificate.
Six places to find your birth time →
See also: Ascendant (Rising sign), House, Midheaven (MC)
Cardinal signs are the four zodiac signs Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn, one from each element. Cardinal is one of the three modes, next to fixed and mutable, and each cardinal sign opens a season. Astrologers read these signs as starters: they tend to see what should happen next and take the first step. Their strength is getting things going. The long middle of a project is read as harder for them.
Cardinal, fixed and mutable signs →
See also: Mode (modality), Fixed signs, Mutable signs
The chart ruler is the planet that rules your Rising sign, for example Venus for a Libra Rising or Mars for an Aries Rising. Astrologers read it as the guide of the whole chart: its sign shows your manner, its house the area of life where much of your energy goes. It needs a birth time, because the Rising sign changes about every two hours. Scorpio, Aquarius and Pisces have a traditional and a modern ruler.
How to find your chart ruler →
See also: Ascendant (Rising sign), Ruling planet, Dominant planet
Chiron is a small body that orbits the Sun between Saturn and Uranus and takes about 50 years for one circuit. In a birth chart it is read as a tender spot: an area where you feel less sure of yourself and where, over time, a particular strength can grow. You share its sign with people born around the same time; its house is personal and needs a birth time. Chiron describes a tendency, never a diagnosis.
See also: Lilith (Black Moon), Saturn, Uranus
A composite chart is a single chart made from the midpoints of two people's birth charts: for each planet, the point exactly halfway between your position and your partner's. Astrologers read it as a picture of the relationship itself, how the two of you are together, as distinct from how each of you is alone. It describes tendencies and gives no verdict. Its Rising sign and houses need both birth times.
What a composite chart shows →
See also: Synastry, Birth chart (natal chart), Aspect
A conjunction is the aspect in which two planets stand at the same place in the zodiac, at an angle of 0°. Astrologers count it when the two are within a few degrees of each other. It is read as a blend: the two planets act as one theme, and many astrologers treat it as the strongest aspect. Planets in the same sign are not necessarily conjunct, because a sign spans 30 degrees.
A cusp is the border where a house begins in a birth chart. The sign on the cusp colors the whole house: Capricorn on the seventh house cusp is read as taking partnership seriously. In most house systems the cusp of the first house is the Rising point. Cusps need a birth time: the Rising point moves about one degree every four minutes, and the cusps move with it. Their position also depends on the house system.
See also: House, House system, Ascendant (Rising sign)
A decan is one of three equal parts of a zodiac sign, each ten degrees wide. Since every sign spans 30 degrees, the first decan covers the early degrees, the second the middle ones and the third the late ones. Some astrologers give each decan its own secondary ruling planet and read it as a finer shade of the sign. It is one way to describe why two people with the same Sun sign can be quite different.
See also: Degree, Sun sign (zodiac sign), Ruling planet
A degree is one of the 360 equal steps of the zodiac circle, and each of the twelve signs covers 30 of them. A position in a chart is written as a degree within a sign, for example 10° Leo. The Sun moves about one degree per day. Astrologers use degrees to say exactly where a planet stands and to measure aspects, the angles between two planets.
The Descendant is the point of the zodiac that was setting on the western horizon at the moment of your birth. It lies exactly opposite the Ascendant and marks the start of the seventh house, the house of partnership. Astrologers read its sign as the qualities you tend to look for in other people, especially in close one-to-one relationships. It can only be found with the birth time and the birth place.
What your Descendant sign means →
See also: Ascendant (Rising sign), Angles, House
A dominant planet is the planet that carries the most weight in a birth chart. Astrologers weigh several clues: a planet close to one of the four angles, the ruler of the Rising sign, a planet with many aspects, or one in a sign it rules. There is no official formula, so two sources can name different planets. The first two clues need a birth time. Its themes are read as the accent of the whole chart.
How to find your dominant planet →
See also: Chart ruler, Angles, Stellium
Earth signs are the three zodiac signs Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn, which share the element earth. Astrologers link them to a practical, steady approach: a feel for what is real, for the body and for work that produces something you can touch. Each shows it differently, because Taurus is a fixed sign, Virgo a mutable one and Capricorn a cardinal one. How much earth a person has depends on the whole chart, not on the Sun sign alone.
See also: Element, Water signs, Mode (modality)
An eclipse is a New Moon or Full Moon that falls close to the Moon's nodes: in a solar eclipse the Moon moves in front of the Sun, in a lunar eclipse it passes through Earth's shadow. Eclipses come in pairs or threes about every six months. Astrologers read a solar eclipse as a strong New Moon, a fresh start, and a lunar eclipse as a strong Full Moon, when something becomes clear. That means emphasis, not an omen.
See also: New Moon, Full Moon, North Node
The ecliptic is the path the Sun appears to follow through the sky in the course of a year, seen from Earth. The zodiac is laid along this line: a circle of 360 degrees, divided into twelve signs of 30 degrees each. Every position in a birth chart is measured along it. The Moon's orbit crosses the ecliptic at two points, the lunar nodes, and eclipses happen near them.
Where the Moon's orbit crosses it →
See also: Zodiac, North Node, Eclipse
An element is one of four groups into which astrology sorts the twelve signs: fire, earth, air and water, with three signs each. Fire (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius) is linked to drive, earth (Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn) to the practical, air (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius) to thinking and exchange, water (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) to feeling. Astrologers count the planets in each element to describe the balance of a chart, as a tendency and not as a verdict.
Fire, earth, air and water explained →
See also: Fire signs, Mode (modality), Polarity
An ephemeris is a table that lists the positions of the Sun, the Moon and the planets in the zodiac for each day. Astrologers use it to look up where a planet stood on a birth date, when it changes sign and when it turns retrograde. The positions come from astronomical calculation and are the same for everyone; reading them is astrology. Today most people get them from a calculated chart, not from a printed table.
An equinox is one of the two moments in the year when day and night are about equally long. At the March equinox, around March 20 or 21, the Sun enters Aries: this point, 0° Aries, is the start of the tropical zodiac that Western astrology uses. Around September 23 the Sun enters Libra. Astrologers read both moments as turning points of the year, when a new season begins.
Where the tropical zodiac begins →
See also: Solstice, Tropical zodiac, Ingress
Fire signs are the three zodiac signs Aries, Leo and Sagittarius. Fire is one of the four elements, next to earth, air and water, and astrologers link it to action, enthusiasm and directness: fire signs are read as quick to start and open about what they feel. Each one belongs to a different mode: Aries is cardinal, Leo fixed, Sagittarius mutable. A chart with little fire is not read as a defect, only as a different mix.
See also: Element, Air signs, Mode (modality)
Fixed signs are the four zodiac signs of the fixed mode: Taurus, Leo, Scorpio and Aquarius. Each one stands in the middle of a season, and astrologers link them to holding on, staying power and loyalty to what has been started. Planets in fixed signs are read as steady and persistent, with a tendency to resist change that comes from outside. There is one fixed sign in each element: earth, fire, water and air.
Cardinal, fixed and mutable signs explained →
See also: Mode (modality), Cardinal signs, Mutable signs
A Full Moon is the phase in which the Moon stands exactly opposite the Sun and its whole face is lit. It comes once in the lunar cycle of about 29.5 days, with the Moon in the sign opposite the Sun. Astrologers read it as a time when things become visible and can be reviewed: a good moment to look at what has grown since the New Moon. A lunar eclipse can only happen at a Full Moon.
New Moon and Full Moon explained →
See also: New Moon, Moon phase, Eclipse
A glyph is a small drawn symbol that stands for a sign, a planet or an aspect in a birth chart. Each of the twelve signs and each planet has its own, so a whole chart fits into one wheel without written words. The usual way in is to learn the glyphs of the Sun, the Moon and the planets first: then you can see at a glance which planet stands in which sign.
The planet glyphs described in words →
See also: Birth chart (natal chart), Zodiac, Aspect
A horoscope is a chart of the sky for one moment and place, most often a birth: then it is called a birth chart. In everyday speech the word also means the short magazine text written for everyone with the same Sun sign. The column uses one fact about you; the chart uses the Sun, the Moon, all planets and, with a birth time, the houses. It is read as a tool for self-reflection, not as a forecast.
Why Sun-sign horoscopes often miss →
See also: Birth chart (natal chart), Sun sign (zodiac sign), Astrology
A house is one of twelve sections of a birth chart that stand for areas of life, such as home, partnership or career. The houses begin at the Rising point and depend on birth time and place, so without a birth time they cannot be known. The planet says what, the sign says how, and the house says where in life. Empty houses are normal: a chart has ten planets and twelve houses.
What each of the twelve houses means →
See also: Cusp, House system, Ascendant (Rising sign)
A house system is the method used to divide a birth chart into its twelve houses. The ones you meet most often are Placidus, Whole Sign, Equal and Koch. All of them start from the same Ascendant and leave every planet in its sign; only the house a planet falls in can change from one system to another. Because the houses begin at the Rising point, every house system needs a birth time and place.
See also: Placidus, Whole Sign houses, House
The IC (Imum Coeli) is the lowest point of a birth chart, exactly opposite the Midheaven, and in most house systems the start of the fourth house. It can only be found with your birth time and place. Astrologers read it as home and roots: where you come from, what makes you feel at home and the private side of life, as the counterpart to the public role shown at the top of the chart.
The twelve houses and four angles →
See also: Midheaven (MC), Angles, House
An ingress is the moment a planet enters a new zodiac sign. The Sun makes an ingress about every 30 days, at a specific minute, and the date can shift by a day from year to year. Slow planets can cross a sign border, move back while retrograde and enter again, as Uranus did before it settled in Gemini on April 26, 2026. Astrologers read an ingress as a change of tone, not as an event.
See also: Transit, Retrograde, Zodiac
Jupiter is the largest planet of the solar system and, in astrology, the planet of growth, confidence and meaning. It rules Sagittarius and, in the traditional system, Pisces. Jupiter takes about 12 years to circle the zodiac and spends about one year in each sign, so people born in the same year often share a Jupiter sign. Its sign is read as your way of growing, its house as the area of life where you tend to expand.
What your Jupiter sign means →
See also: Jupiter return, Social planets, Saturn
A Jupiter return is the time when Jupiter comes back to the position it had when you were born. Jupiter needs 11.86 years for one circuit, so it happens about every 12 years, around ages 12, 24, 36, 48, 60 and 72. Astrologers read it as the start of a new cycle of growth: a time to learn, widen your view and ask where you want to expand next. It describes a theme, not an event.
What the Jupiter return means →
See also: Jupiter, Saturn return, Transit
Lilith, the Black Moon, is a calculated point and not a body: the lunar apogee, the place where the Moon's orbit is farthest from Earth. It takes about 8.85 years to move through the zodiac, about nine months per sign. Astrologers read it as the part of you that does not bend to be liked: where you insist on your independence, set a boundary and say no.
Black Moon Lilith in your chart →
See also: Moon, North Node, Chiron
The luminaries are the Sun and the Moon, the two lights of a birth chart. Astrology counts both among the planets for simplicity, although the Sun is a star and the Moon is Earth's satellite. The Sun is read as your core and what drives you, the Moon as your feelings and what you need to feel safe. Unlike the other planets, the two are never retrograde.
Sun, Moon and Rising explained →
See also: Sun, Moon, Personal planets
Mars is the planet of drive in astrology: it stands for energy, desire, courage and the way you go after what you want and handle conflict. It rules Aries and, in the traditional system, Scorpio. Mars takes roughly two years through the zodiac, about six to seven weeks per sign, longer when retrograde. Your Mars sign is read as your style of acting and asserting yourself, as a tendency and not a fixed trait.
See also: Personal planets, Venus, Ruling planet
Mercury is the planet closest to the Sun and, in astrology, the planet of thinking and communication. Its sign in a birth chart is read as the way you think, learn, speak and sort information. Mercury rules Gemini and Virgo. Seen from Earth it never moves more than about 28 degrees from the Sun, so your Mercury sign is your Sun sign or a neighboring sign. About three times a year it is retrograde for about three weeks.
What your Mercury sign means →
See also: Personal planets, Retrograde, Ruling planet
The Midheaven, or MC (Medium Coeli), is the point of the zodiac that was highest in the sky at the moment you were born. It needs your birth time and place, and in many house systems it marks the start of the tenth house. Astrologers read it as your public side: career, reputation and the direction you grow toward. It describes a style and a pull, not a job title.
Your Midheaven sign and career →
See also: IC (Imum Coeli), Angles, Ascendant (Rising sign)
A mode, also called a modality or quality, is one of three ways in which a zodiac sign acts: cardinal, fixed or mutable. Each mode has four signs, one from each element. Cardinal signs (Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn) are read as starting things, fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius) as seeing things through, mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces) as adapting. Together with the element, the mode makes each of the twelve signs distinct.
See also: Cardinal signs, Fixed signs, Mutable signs
The Moon is, in astrology, the body that stands for feelings, needs and a sense of safety. It rules Cancer and counts as a planet, like the Sun. The Moon circles the zodiac in about 27.3 days and changes sign about every two and a half days, so on a changeover day the birth time decides your Moon sign. Its sign is read as your emotional style, its house as the area where you look for comfort.
See also: Moon sign, Luminaries, Moon phase
A Moon phase is the share of the Moon's lit half that you see from Earth, which depends on the angle between the Moon and the Sun. Astrology counts eight phases of 45 degrees each, from the New Moon through the Full Moon to the waning crescent. One cycle takes about 29.5 days. The phase you were born under is read as the way your aims (Sun) and your needs (Moon) work together.
The Moon sign is the zodiac sign the Moon was in at the moment you were born. The Moon changes sign about every two and a half days, so on a changeover day you need the birth time to be sure. Astrologers read it as your emotional side: what you need to feel safe, how you react before you think and what comforts you. It often explains why two people with the same Sun sign feel so different.
See also: Moon, Sun sign (zodiac sign), Ascendant (Rising sign)
Mutable signs are the four zodiac signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces, one from each element. Mutable is one of the three modes, next to cardinal and fixed, and each mutable sign closes a season. Astrologers read these signs as adaptable: they tend to adjust, to keep several options open and to make room for change. Their strength is flexibility. Settling on one course and staying with it is read as the part that takes them more effort.
See also: Mode (modality), Cardinal signs, Fixed signs
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See my free previewNatal means relating to birth: a natal chart is a birth chart, and a natal planet is a planet in the position it had at the moment you were born. Astrologers use the word to tell the fixed picture of your birth apart from the moving sky. In a transit, for example, a planet of today passes over a natal position. Natal positions never change; the Rising sign and the houses among them need a birth time.
See also: Birth chart (natal chart), Transit, Birth time
Neptune is a slow outer planet that takes about 165 years to circle the zodiac and stays about 14 years in each sign. Astrologers link it to imagination, ideals, longing and compassion, and to the places where things tend to stay blurry. Neptune is the modern ruler of Pisces. Because it moves so slowly, you share its sign with a whole generation. The house it stands in is the personal part, and that needs a birth time.
Neptune and the generational planets →
See also: Outer planets, Uranus, Pluto
A New Moon is the moment when the Moon stands at the same place in the zodiac as the Sun, so its lit side faces away from Earth and it cannot be seen. It always falls in the sign the Sun is in, and from one New Moon to the next takes about 29.5 days. Astrologers read it as a time to begin something: to set an intention and start small.
New Moon and Full Moon explained →
See also: Full Moon, Moon phase, Eclipse
The North Node is the point where the Moon's orbit crosses the ecliptic, the path of the Sun, heading north. It is a point in space, not a planet, and the South Node lies exactly opposite. The nodes move backward through the zodiac and need about 18.6 years for one circle. Astrologers read the North Node as a direction of growth and the South Node as what already comes easily: an interpretive tradition, not a statement about destiny.
See also: South Node, Ecliptic, Eclipse
Ophiuchus is a constellation, the Serpent Bearer, that the Sun passes in front of roughly from the end of November to mid-December. It is sometimes called the 13th zodiac sign, but in astrology it is not a sign. The twelve signs are equal sections of 30 degrees named after constellations, not the constellations themselves, which differ a lot in size. Thirteen constellations lie on the Sun's path, but the signs stay twelve. Your sign does not change.
Is there a 13th zodiac sign? →
See also: Zodiac, Ecliptic, Precession
An opposition is the aspect in which two points of a chart stand 180 degrees apart, six signs from each other. It is read as a polarity: two sides that pull apart and look for a balance, often split between you and other people until you claim both. It counts as a tense aspect, and tense does not mean bad: it is read as friction that builds skill. A Full Moon is an opposition of Sun and Moon.
An orb is the number of degrees by which an aspect may miss its exact angle and still count. Two planets 93 degrees apart, for example, form a square with an orb of three degrees. For the major aspects many astrologers allow up to about 6 to 8 degrees, less for sextiles, and they differ on the exact limits. A smaller orb is read as a tighter, more noticeable connection.
Outer planets are Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, the three slowest planets used in astrology. Uranus spends about seven years in a sign, Neptune about 14, Pluto between about 12 and more than 30. Everyone born within a few years of you has them in the same signs, so they are also called generational planets. Their signs are read as themes of an age group. The house each one stands in, which needs a birth time, makes them personal.
Personal planets are the fast-moving bodies of a chart: Mercury, Venus and Mars, usually counted together with the Sun and the Moon. They change sign quickly, so they differ from person to person, even at the same age. Astrologers read them as your everyday character: thinking, loving, acting, feeling and your core. Seen from Earth, Mercury and Venus never move far from the Sun. The slow planets are shared with many people of your age.
See also: Social planets, Outer planets, Luminaries
Placidus is the most common house system in modern Western astrology. It divides the chart by time: by how long a degree of the zodiac takes to rise from the horizon to its highest point. The result is houses of unequal size, with the Midheaven as the start of the 10th house. Near and beyond the polar circles the method breaks down. Like every house system, Placidus needs an exact birth time and place.
Placidus and other house systems →
See also: House system, Whole Sign houses, Midheaven (MC)
Pluto is the slowest planet used in astrology: it takes about 248 years to circle the zodiac and stays between about 12 and more than 30 years in one sign. Everyone born in that span shares the sign, which is why it is called a generational planet. Pluto is the modern ruler of Scorpio. Astrologers read it as slow, thorough change: what you hold on to, what you let go of and where you renew yourself.
See also: Outer planets, Uranus, Neptune
Polarity is the division of the twelve zodiac signs into two groups of six that alternate around the circle. Fire and air signs (Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, Aquarius) are read as turning outward, earth and water signs (Taurus, Cancer, Virgo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Pisces) as turning inward. Older books call the groups positive and negative, which is no judgment. The word is also used for a pair of opposite signs, such as Aries and Libra.
Fire with air, earth with water →
See also: Element, Opposition, Zodiac
Precession is a slow wobble of Earth's axis that takes about 26,000 years for one full cycle. It shifts the March equinox against the stars by about one degree every 72 years. This is why the tropical zodiac, which starts there, and the sidereal zodiac, which is tied to the stars, are currently about 24 degrees apart. Most people's Sun is one sign earlier in the sidereal zodiac. Neither is wrong: they measure from different starting points.
Tropical and sidereal zodiac compared →
See also: Tropical zodiac, Sidereal zodiac, Equinox
Retrograde is the apparent backward motion of a planet through the zodiac, seen from Earth. No planet really reverses: it is an effect of perspective, because Earth moves too. The Sun and the Moon are never retrograde. Astrologers read a retrograde period as a time to review, revise and slow down. A planet retrograde at your birth is read as turned inward: its theme works more quietly, at your own pace. That is common and not a flaw.
Retrograde planets in your birth chart →
See also: Mercury, Transit, Outer planets
A ruling planet is the planet that astrology assigns to a zodiac sign, such as Mars for Aries, Venus for Taurus and Libra, or the Sun for Leo. Three signs have a traditional and a modern ruler: Scorpio (Mars, Pluto), Aquarius (Saturn, Uranus) and Pisces (Jupiter, Neptune). Most people mean the ruler of their Sun sign. Astrologers read its place in your chart as a hint at how that sign shows up in you.
The ruler of your Rising sign →
See also: Chart ruler, Dominant planet, Sun sign (zodiac sign)
Saturn is the planet astrologers link to structure, responsibility, limits and patience. It needs about 29.5 years to circle the zodiac and stays about two and a half years in each sign. Saturn rules Capricorn and, traditionally, Aquarius. Its place in a chart is read as where you take life seriously and what you master slowly. Its return to its birth position at about age 29 is called the Saturn return.
See also: Saturn return, Social planets, Ruling planet
A Saturn return is the time when Saturn comes back to the exact position it had at your birth. Saturn takes about 29.5 years to circle the Sun, so the first return comes at about age 29 and the second at about 58 to 60. Because of retrograde motion, Saturn often crosses the birth position three times within about nine months. Astrologers read it as a time for taking stock and taking on responsibility.
See also: Saturn, Jupiter return, Transit
A sextile is the aspect in which two points of a chart stand 60 degrees apart, two signs from each other. It is read as an opportunity: the two planets cooperate well, mostly once you make active use of it. Together with the trine it counts as an easy or flowing aspect. For a sextile, astrologers usually allow a smaller orb, the permitted deviation from the exact angle, than for the other major aspects.
The sidereal zodiac is a zodiac tied to the stars, not to the seasons, and it is the one used in Vedic astrology. It has the same twelve signs of 30 degrees as the tropical zodiac of Western astrology but is currently shifted by about 24 degrees, so most people's Sun is one sign earlier in it. The gap comes from precession, a slow wobble of Earth's axis. Neither is wrong: they are two reference systems for one sky.
Tropical and sidereal zodiac compared →
See also: Tropical zodiac, Precession, Zodiac
Social planets are Jupiter and Saturn, the two planets between the fast personal planets and the slow outer planets. Jupiter spends about one year in a sign, Saturn about two and a half, so you share their signs with people of roughly your age. Astrologers read them as your link to the wider world: Jupiter as growth, trust and where you reach further, Saturn as structure, duty and what you build slowly.
Jupiter and Saturn cycles by age →
See also: Jupiter, Saturn, Personal planets
A solar return is the moment each year when the Sun returns to the exact position it had at your birth. It falls on your birthday or on the day before or after. A chart calculated for that moment, the solar return chart, is read for the year from one birthday to the next: its themes and its emphasis, not a forecast of events. Its Rising sign and houses can only be read with your birth time.
How a solar return chart works →
See also: Sun, Birth time, Transit
A solstice is one of the two moments in the year when the Sun reaches its northernmost or southernmost point in the sky. The Sun enters Cancer at the June solstice, around June 21, and Capricorn at the December solstice, around December 21 or 22. Both are cardinal signs, which open a season. In the northern hemisphere the June solstice is the longest day, the December solstice the shortest. Astrologers read both as turning points of the year.
How cardinal signs open the seasons →
See also: Equinox, Cardinal signs, Tropical zodiac
The South Node is one of the two points where the Moon's orbit crosses the path of the Sun, always exactly opposite the North Node. It is a calculated point, not a body. Astrologers read it as the familiar: skills and reactions that come without thinking, and the habit you slip back into when things get difficult. The nodes move backward through the zodiac in about 18.6 years, about a year and a half per sign.
North Node and South Node explained →
See also: North Node, Eclipse, Ecliptic
A square is an aspect of 90 degrees between two points in a chart, usually three signs apart. Signs in a square share the same mode, for example Aries and Cancer, but differ in element. Astrologers read it as friction: two needs that pull in different directions and push you to act. That is not a flaw. A square is read as the place where effort turns into skill over time.
How squares and other aspects work →
See also: Aspect, Opposition, Orb
A stellium is a group of three or more planets in the same zodiac sign or the same house of a birth chart. Astrologers read it as a point of focus: the themes of that sign or house take up a large share of your attention. Many astrologers ask for four planets when the Sun, Mercury and Venus are involved, because those three always travel close together. A stellium in a house needs the birth time.
See also: Conjunction, House, Dominant planet
The Sun is, in astrology, the body that stands for your core: identity, will and vitality. It rules Leo and is counted among the planets. The Sun moves about one degree per day and stays about 30 days in each sign. The sign it stood in at your birth is your Sun sign, what most people call "my sign". It is one part of the chart, next to the Moon, the Rising sign and the planets.
Sun, Moon and Rising sign together →
See also: Sun sign (zodiac sign), Luminaries, Moon
A Sun sign (zodiac sign) is the sign the Sun stood in when you were born. When people say "my sign", they mean the Sun sign. It is read as your core: what drives you and where you want to shine. The Sun spends about 30 days in each sign; on a changeover day the birth time decides. It is one part of a birth chart, next to the Moon sign, the Rising sign and the planets.
See also: Zodiac, Moon sign, Ascendant (Rising sign)
Synastry is the comparison of two birth charts, planet by planet. Both charts stay as they are, and astrologers look at the aspects between one person's planets and the other's, for example your Venus and your partner's Mars. They read these contacts as tendencies: where two people understand each other easily and where they need more translation. Synastry gives no score and does not say whether two people match.
How synastry aspects are read →
See also: Composite chart, Aspect, Venus
A transit is a planet in the sky of a given day meeting a point in your birth chart. The birth chart stays fixed at the minute you were born, the planets keep moving, and a transit names the time when a moving planet reaches a place that matters in your chart, such as your Sun or your Moon. Astrologers read transits as themes for a stretch of time, not as predictions of events.
See also: Natal, Ingress, Saturn return
A trine is an aspect of 120 degrees between two points in a birth chart, four signs apart and usually in the same element. Astrologers read it as an easy aspect: the two planets support each other without effort, like a talent that comes naturally. Because it runs so smoothly, a trine is easy to overlook and is read as an invitation to use it on purpose. A few degrees of deviation, called the orb, are allowed.
The tropical zodiac is the zodiac that starts at the March equinox, at 0° Aries, and divides the Sun's path into twelve equal signs of 30 degrees. It follows the seasons, not the stars, and most Western astrology uses it. The sidereal zodiac of Vedic astrology is tied to the stars and is currently shifted by about 24 degrees, so most people's Sun is one sign earlier there. Neither is wrong: they are two frames of reference.
Tropical and sidereal zodiac compared →
See also: Sidereal zodiac, Precession, Equinox
Uranus is a slow outer planet that takes 84 years to circle the zodiac and spends about seven years in each sign. People born within a few years of each other therefore share its sign, which makes it a generational planet. Uranus is the modern ruler of Aquarius. Astrologers read it as the urge for freedom and change: where you do things your own way, question habits and look for something new.
See also: Outer planets, Pluto, Neptune
Venus is the planet astrologers link to love, attraction, taste and what you value. Its sign in a birth chart is read as how you show affection, what draws you in and what you find beautiful. Venus rules Taurus and Libra. Seen from Earth it is never more than about 47 degrees from the Sun, so your Venus sign is always your Sun sign or one of the two signs before or after it.
See also: Personal planets, Ruling planet, Mars
Water signs are the three zodiac signs that belong to the element water: Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces. Astrologers link them to feeling, empathy and memory. Planets in water signs are read as sensitive to moods and protective, guided more by what feels right than by arguments. How strong water is in your chart depends on all your planets, not only on your Sun. It describes a tendency, not a fixed trait.
See also: Element, Earth signs, Fire signs
Whole Sign houses are the oldest house system, in which each house is exactly one whole sign. The sign that holds the Ascendant is the 1st house from first to last degree, the next sign the 2nd house, and so on. House and sign borders are the same lines. The Midheaven stays a separate point and is not always the start of the 10th house. The system still needs a birth time, because it starts from the Rising sign.
Whole Sign and Placidus compared →
See also: House system, Placidus, Ascendant (Rising sign)
The zodiac is the circle of 360 degrees along the Sun's yearly path, divided into twelve equal signs of 30 degrees each, from Aries to Pisces. Every planet in a birth chart stands somewhere on this circle. The signs are named after constellations but are not the constellations themselves, which differ widely in size. Western astrology uses the tropical zodiac, which begins at the March equinox. The sign a planet is in is read as its style.
Dates for all twelve zodiac signs →
See also: Ecliptic, Tropical zodiac, Sun sign (zodiac sign)
Astrology is a tool for self-reflection, not a science, and it does not replace medical, psychological, legal or financial advice.
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For self-reflection and entertainment. Not medical, psychological, legal or financial advice.
