Notes
Common questions about astrology and the astronomy behind it, written by hand.
What a rising sign is, and why it needs a birth time and place
The ascendant is the degree of the ecliptic rising in the east at the moment of birth, and it moves one degree every four minutes.
4 min read
Sun, moon and rising sign: what each of the three describes
What the sun, moon and rising sign each describe, why they disagree, and why that disagreement is the ordinary case.
4 min read
Zodiac dates are not fixed: why the same birthday changes sign
Seventeen calendar dates change sign between 1930 and 2030, because the tropical year runs about 365.2422 days.
4 min read
How a horoscope is computed — the astronomy, and where the writing comes from
What an ephemeris computes, how accurate it is, and which half of a horoscope is written rather than measured.
4 min read
Moon sign: what it is and how to find it
What a moon sign is, why the hour of birth usually settles it, and how it differs from the moon phase.
4 min read
Unknown birth time: what a chart can still say
Which placements survive without a birth time, where the hour may still be recorded, and what a guess costs.
5 min read