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The Real Solar Zodiac - Sun Signs

Definition: [Zodiacs] The thirteen signs / constellations against which the

Sun is seen to move, as seen from the Earth.

Real Solar Zodiac Dates - Sun Sign Dates:

Real Sun Signs Conventional* Sun Signs

Pisces 12- to the 18-Apr 19-Feb to the 20-Mar This table is
accurate for
Mar 2002 AD.
Aries 19- to the 13- 21-Mar to the 19-Apr
* Conventional if
Apr May you follow the
Taurus 14- to the 19-Jun 20-Apr to the 20-May Western Tropical
May Zodiac, not the
Eastern Sidereal
Gemini 20-Jun to the 20-Jul 21-May to the 20-Jun Zodiac.
Cancer 21-Jul to the 9-Aug 21-Jun to the 22-Jul NB If you were
Leo 10- to the 15-Sep 23-Jul to the 22-Aug born on the cusp
Aug of a Real Solar
Zodiac sign you
Virgo 16-Sep to the 30-Oct 23-Aug to the 22-Sep should note that
Libra 31- to the 22- 23-Sep to the 22-Oct these dates vary
Oct Nov - by a maximum
of a day - within
Scorpius 23- to the 29- 23-Oct to the 21-Nov the four yearly
Nov Nov leap year cycle.
Ophiuchus 30- to the 17- The Real Solar
Nov Dec Zodiac dates
also move
Sagittarius 18- to the 18-Jan 22-Nov to the 21-Dec forward by about
Dec one full day
Capricornus 19-Jan to the 15-Feb 22-Dec to the 19-Jan every 70 years
because of the
Aquarius 16- to the 11- 20-Jan to the 18-Feb Movement of the
Feb Mar Ages.

If you follow conventional Western astrology, the Tropical Zodiac dates on

the right of the table will form the Zodiac Wheel you are used to.
Unfortunately the dates are not correct. The real Sun Sign dates are given on
the left hand side of the table. As you can see there is not much overlap
between the two. In fact for 326 days each year the Sun does not appear
against the constellation that the Tropical Zodiac says it is in. If you
always felt that your Sun Sign doesn't really describe you, there is an
89% chance that you are right! This also means that
the Moon and Planets are not usually in the sign that the Tropical
Zodiac says they are, and thatRising Signs are inaccurate 326 times out of
every 365 if the Tropical Zodiac is used to find them.

Why are there Two Zodiacs in the Table and Why is One Real?: To
answer that question I'll define exactly what the Real Solar Zodiac is. As to
why it is described as real, this is because it is based on an accurate
description of the heavens as seen from Earth.

What is the Real Solar

Zodiac?: The heavens contain
many constellations. Many of the
ones we use today were originally
mapped, perhaps three millennia
ago, by the Ancient Greeks. The
Sun, as seen from Earth, passes in
front of thirteen of these
constellations in one year. So the
wheel of the Real Solar Zodiac
contains these thirteen signs: the
real Sun Signs. The sign we are
not used to seeing in the Tropical
Zodiac Western tradition
is Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer,
30 Nov to 17 Dec.

Why are the Dates so Different

Between Reality and the
Tropical Zodiac?:There are three
reasons for this.

Firstly, the Greek constellations -

the figures the Greeks saw in the
stars - are all different shapes and
sizes. Hence these thirteen
constellations are not all the same
size. Scorpius, for example, is very
small and the Sun takes only
seven days to pass across it, as
seen from the Earth. Virgo is much
larger.

Secondly, because of the

Movement of the Ages,
the Tropical Zodiac is now shifted
by almost a month in comparison
to the heavens - the Tropical
Zodiac is tied to the calendar.
Thirdly, the Babylonians never
included Ophiuchus within
their Zodiac. See theZodiac
Wheels link for a description of how
the Zodiacs evolved.