The Zodiac  

Everyone must face that most inevitable of questions: “What Star Sign are you?”. The questioner (as well as the bulk of society, I suspect) only has the vaguest idea of what it is they are asking you.

They are referring to the pseudo-scientific belief that the position of the sun, planets, moon and stars govern the actions and characteristics of people. According to astrologers, everyone is born under one of 12 “star signs”, or constellations. Depending on which one you are born under, you supposedly exhibit certain characteristics, and astrologers (if paid a suitable sum, of course) can predict your future.

Given such a clear premise, you would think that, at the very least, astrologers would be consistent, but take a look at horoscopes made by different astrologers for the same time period and you will find they differ tremendously. One newspaper stated that I should seek new employment, another that I would fall hopelessly in love. Yet another advised me to avoid dangerous situations, a rather obvious bit of advice.

The 12 “star signs” the astrologers use are the constellations that fall on the ecliptic, otherwise referred to as the zodiac. The ecliptic is merely the path the sun seems to follow as the earth revolves around it. So, if on a certain date you looked at the sun, the current “star sign” would be the constellation directly behind the Sun. Take a look at your “star sign” according to modern astrology, in table 1.

Let’s analyze this a little further. We must ask what, exactly, the zodiac is. The zodiac is “A belt on the celestial sphere, about 8° either side of the ecliptic, which forms the background for the motions of the Sun, Moon, and planets.” This is all fine and well, excepting for one or two little problems. The ecliptic passes through more than 12 constellations, it passes through 13, the thirteenth being Ophiuchus. Why do the astrologers ignore poor old Ophiuchus? Probably because it is not a particularly bright constellation. But that does not change the fact that the ecliptic passes through 13 constellations, not 12. Not only that, but the astrologer dates are based on information that is 2000 years out of date. Due to a phenomenon called precession the Sun appears in different constellations to those 2000 years ago. We can immediately modify table 1. Check out table 2.
 
 

But if we take the definition of the zodiac literally, then things stand a good chance of getting out of hand. We find that  the zodiac contains 24 constellations.
 
 

Now you know the physical realities behind “star signs”. Astrologers use the excuse that 12 star signs are merely a convenient naming convention to describe cosmic effect on our daily lives. This will have to wait for another article.
 

Evan Dembskey