The Aspects: What’s the Angle?

The Zodiac Signs, the Houses, and the Planets all carry their own unique characteristics and potentials. The Aspects deal with the influences of two Planets working in unison on the Zodiac Signs that fall within an angular proximity of one another in relationship to the Earth. Aspects are measured in degrees, minutes, and seconds. (It’s geometry, Folks! Plain and simple!) 

 ☞ Note: It is the Zodiac Signs and not the Houses that are used in determining what planetary Aspects appear within a chart.

The angles formed by the Aspects are defined in degrees and/or a fraction of the Zodiac Wheel as two imaginary lines formed by the positions of two Planets, intersecting in the center of the circle (the Earth being that center). The angles of the Aspects are allowed a degree of less or more allowance called an “orb”. (For example, in the case of the Sextile Aspect, which is defined as two planets being 60° apart with an orb of 6°, the two Planets involved can be 54° to 66° apart.)

The Aspects are broken into two categories of the Major Aspects and the Minor Aspects. As the names imply, the Major Aspects have a stronger influence on a horoscope than the Minor Aspects. Think of these two Planets as tag-teaming the Zodiac Signs within which they appear and having a blended influence on those signs.

The Major Aspects Defined

• CONJUNCTION—Strength & Focus
• two planets appearing in the same degree of one another (0° with 10° orb)
• in the same Zodiac Sign
• having the same gender, element, and quality

• SEXTILE—Opportunity
• two planets appearing 60° apart with an orb of 6° (1/6 of a circle)
• appear in two adjacent Zodiac Signs

• SQUARE—Stress & Obstacles
• two planets appearing 90° apart with an orb of 6° (1/4 of a circle)
• appear in approximately same degrees three Zodiac Signs apart (two Zodiac Signs appear between them)

• TRINE—Ease
• two planets appearing 120° apart with an orb of 6° (1/3 of a circle)
• appear in approximately same degrees four Zodiac Signs apart (three Zodiac Signs appear between them)

• OPPOSITION—Awareness
• two planets that appear 180° apart with an orb of 8° (1/2 of a circle)
• opposite one another on the wheel, appearing in opposite Zodiac Signs that tend to highlight each other’s shortcomings

The Minor Aspects Defined

• SEMI-SQUARE—Delays & Setbacks
• two planets appearing 45° apart with an orb of 3°-4° (1/8 of a circle)

• SEMI-SEXTILE—Beneficial
• two planets appearing 30° apart with an orb of 3°-4° (1/12 of a circle)
• appear across two Zodiac Signs and separated by 30°

• QUINCUNX (also called INCONJUNCT)—Difficulties & Adjustment
• two planets in approximately the same degree of two Zodiac Signs, appearing 150° apart (5/12 of a circle)
• separated by five Zodiac Signs
• always involves incompatible elements

• QUINTILE—Intelligence & Talent
• two planets appearing 72° apart (1/5 of a circle)

The Moon Phases

The Moon is not a Planet but rather a natural satellite orbiting Earth. It is an illuminary in astrology, serving as an amplifier to the characteristics of any Planet with which it appears within a Zodiac Sign. The Moon is a reflection of our emotions.

The Moon has no natural light. It is the reflection of the Sun’s light that appears to us in the night sky. It takes the Moon 28-29 days to orbit the Earth, while in turn the Earth takes 365 days to orbit the Sun. The Moon, the Earth, and the Sun are in constant motion, causing the Moon to appear to us in different configurations that we call “the Phases of the Moon”.

There are eight Phases of the Moon that include:

• New Moon—the “invisible” phase; illuminated side faces Sun while night side faces Earth, giving the illusion of invisibility

• Waxing Crescent—illuminated side faces mostly away from Earth’s view; crescent grows daily as Moon’s orbit carries the day side more into visibility

• First Quarter—has completed first quarter of monthly orbit around Earth; one-half of illuminated side is visible to Earth

• Waxing Gibbous—most of the day side is visible as illuminated portion forms more convex (reverse crescent) shape; appears more brightly in sky

• Full Moon—entire day side in full view from Earth; positioned on opposite side of Earth from Sun; remains for a few days before beginning to shift into next phase

• Waning Gibbous—beginning of journey back to Sun; illuminated portion appears to shrink as the Moon’s orbit carries it out of view on Earth

• Third Quarter (also, Last Quarter)—has completed three-quarters of monthly orbit around the Earth; one-half of illuminated side is visible to Earth (opposite side is now illuminated as was seen during First Quarter phase)

• Waning Crescent—the Moon’s orbit has now almost completed a full cycle around the Earth; day side begins to completely face the Sun again; illuminated crescent shape is now appearing on opposite side of Moon as was seen during the Waxing Crescent

Because the Moon’s orbit around Earth is so quick, the energies of the Moon are changing daily. The Phases of the Moon can be used to set affirmations and intentions to best possible outcome for an individual.

The PLANETS: Enter the Clowns

Remember the theater analogy concerning the ZODIAC SIGNS, the HOUSES, and the PLANETS? The Planets are the actors on the stage of our lives (the Houses). The Zodiac Signs give these actors their personality and character. 

The original Planets are the five that can be seen by the “naked eye” from Earth. These five Planets are referred to as the “Wandering Stars” and include Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, and Saturn. Each of these Planets is named for a deity… either a Roman or a Greek god… and each has a specific function and energy that serves as an influencer on the Zodiac Sign within which it appears.

Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto are referred to as the Transcendental Planets in Traditional Astrology. Though no longer considered a planet, the energy of Pluto still contributes to a horoscope. It is a heavenly body in our solar system and, therefore, projects influencing energies on Earth and her inhabitants. Due to their greater distance from the Sun, the influences of the Transcendental Planets are more philosophical in nature. Their effects must be discovered through closer observation. Their influences are considered to be more generational than individual, since it takes them years to move from one Zodiac Sign to the next.

 The Sun and the Moon are not planets. They are LUMINARIES and act as amplifiers to the characteristics of the planet(s) appearing within a same House. The Sun exposes our truth; the Moon reflects our emotions.

A horoscope provides predictions for possibilities based on the positioning of the Planets in relationship to an individual’s Zodiac Sign. The natal/birth chart, which is a snapshot of the sky at the moment of an individual’s birth, shows the positioning of the Planets, defining their personalities within the Zodiac Signs within which they appear in this moment. 

No two individuals are ever identically the same… even in the case of identical twins… due to the planetary positioning shifts that occur every 4 minutes. Every 4 minutes the Ascendant changes by 1 degree. The positioning of the Planets in the snapshot of the sky taken at the moment of an individual’s birth will not repeat exactly for another 4,320,000 years! And even at that, genetic and environmental influences will contribute to the ultimate differences in any two individuals born at these two otherwise identical positions of the Planets. 

It is possible for two people to be born at the same moment and in the same location/hospital. It has been shown that such individuals live very similar lives (follow same career paths, marry at the same time, have the same number of children with the same genders, develop the same illnesses, die at the same time). These people are known as “Astral Twins” or “Time Twins”, but they are very rare!

These are the known planetary energies that we experience here on Earth. Discoveries of new planets are always a possibility. For instance, the discovery of a small planet or asteroid was made in 1977. This tiny planetary body is named Chiron, who in Greek mythology was the wise centaur, a teacher, and a healer. The rulership of Chiron has been attributed to both Scorpio and Sagittarius, but by some is considered a “maverick”. Its influences are generally attributed to spiritual regeneration and the search for meaningful work.

The discovery of Neptune’s moon, Titon, in 1989 gives rise to the belief that Titon was once a planet orbiting the Sun until it was drawn into Neptune’s gravitational pull.

It is logical to believe that more planets are to be discovered. With each discovery, the planet will be given a rulership to a Zodiac Sign. For instance, two such discoveries point toward the planet Apollo being the true ruler of Taurus (who now shares the Planet Venus with the Zodiac Sign of Libra) and Vulcan being the true ruler of Virgo (which currently shares the Planet Mercury with the Zodiac Sign of Gemini). 

For the study of Modern/Traditional Astrology, we only recognize fully the influences of the five “Wandering Stars” and the three Transcendental Planets.