Sky on December 21, 2004: where the Sun, Moon and planets really were

The real sky on December 21, 2004: Sun in Sagittarius (horoscope says "Sagittarius"), Moon 77% lit, planet positions from ephemerides.

The sky on December 21, 2004 — as it really was

That day the Sun stood in Sagittarius — sign and constellation agree here.

astronomy-engine ephemerides (VSOP87/ELP), IAU 1930 constellation boundaries. Positions accurate to a fraction of a degree.

Checkable facts with a tag and a source; the classical reading is in the chart.

The Moon that day [EXACT]
waxing gibbous, 77% lit; the Moon was 393,972 km away.
astronomy-engine
How far Earth has travelled since [EXACT]
21.8 orbits of the Sun — 20,473 million km, that is 26,630 return trips to the Moon; 7,957 rotations of Earth; with the Sun — 158.1 billion km around the Galactic centre, 6.1 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 346 million km away; today it is 245 million km (closer by 1.4×).
astronomy-engine; checked against JPL Horizons for 2026-09-14
Solar cycle [ESTIMATE]
That day fell in solar cycle 23, on the decline (68% through the cycle).
SILSO smoothed minima
When the sky repeats [EXACT]
Mars returns to that day’s point of its orbit on July 18, 2027; Jupiter — in 2028; a full moon exactly on this date — December 20, 2029
sidereal periods: Mars 686.98 d, Jupiter 11.862 yr
How far the sky has drifted since [EXACT]
The vernal point has shifted 1,080″ since that day; the real constellations now sit 23.9° away from the astrologers’ “signs”.
precession 50.29″/yr
Picture of the day [EXACT]
NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day for this date: apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap041221.html
NASA APOD

Computed from the date only; nothing about you is stored.