The sky on July 22, 1961 — as it really was
That day the Sun stood in Cancer — sign and constellation agree here.
Bodies on the ecliptic (noon UTC)
- ☉︎ Sun — 119.4° · sign Cancer · constellation Cancer
- ☽︎ Moon — 227.8° · sign Scorpio · constellation Libra
- ☿︎ Mercury — 99.5° · sign Cancer · constellation Gemini
- ♀︎ Venus — 76.5° · sign Gemini · constellation Taurus
- ♂︎ Mars — 164.1° · sign Virgo · constellation Leo
- ♃︎ Jupiter — 302.6° · sign Aquarius · constellation Capricornus
- ♄︎ Saturn — 296.3° · sign Capricorn · constellation Sagittarius
- ☽︎ Moon 66% illuminated
astronomy-engine ephemerides (VSOP87/ELP), IAU 1930 constellation boundaries. Positions accurate to a fraction of a degree.
The day’s dossier, from real data
Checkable facts with a tag and a source; the classical reading is in the chart.
- The Moon that day [EXACT]
first quarter, 66% lit; the Moon was 382,587 km away.
astronomy-engine - How far Earth has travelled since [EXACT]
65.2 orbits of the Sun — 61,279 million km, that is 79,708 return trips to the Moon; 23,816 rotations of Earth; with the Sun — 473.3 billion km around the Galactic centre, 18.3 light-days.
29.78 km/s along the orbit; 230 km/s around the Galactic centre - Mars then and now [EXACT]
On that day Mars was 328 million km away; today it is 244 million km (closer by 1.3×).
astronomy-engine; checked against JPL Horizons for 2026-09-14 - Solar cycle [ESTIMATE]
That day fell in solar cycle 19, on the decline (70% through the cycle).
SILSO smoothed minima - When the sky repeats [EXACT]
Mars returns to that day’s point of its orbit on May 21, 2027; Jupiter — in 2032; a full moon exactly on this date — July 22, 2043
sidereal periods: Mars 686.98 d, Jupiter 11.862 yr - How far the sky has drifted since [EXACT]
The vernal point has shifted 3,276″ since that day; the real constellations now sit 23.3° away from the astrologers’ “signs”.
precession 50.29″/yr
Other dates
Computed from the date only; nothing about you is stored.