The sky on July 21, 2009 — as it really was
That day the Sun stood in Cancer — sign and constellation agree here.
Bodies on the ecliptic (noon UTC)
- ☉︎ Sun — 118.9° · sign Cancer · constellation Cancer
- ☽︎ Moon — 110.2° · sign Cancer · constellation Gemini
- ☿︎ Mercury — 127.2° · sign Leo · constellation Cancer
- ♀︎ Venus — 78.0° · sign Gemini · constellation Taurus
- ♂︎ Mars — 66.5° · sign Gemini · constellation Taurus
- ♃︎ Jupiter — 325.0° · sign Aquarius · constellation Capricornus
- ♄︎ Saturn — 168.3° · sign Virgo · constellation Leo
- ☽︎ Moon 1% 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]
new moon, 1% lit; the Moon was 357,569 km away.
astronomy-engine - How far Earth has travelled since [EXACT]
17.2 orbits of the Sun — 16,169 million km, that is 21,031 return trips to the Moon; 6,284 rotations of Earth; with the Sun — 124.9 billion km around the Galactic centre, 4.8 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 271 million km away; today it is 246 million km (closer by 1.1×).
astronomy-engine; checked against JPL Horizons for 2026-09-14 - Solar cycle [ESTIMATE]
That day fell in solar cycle 24, right at the minimum (6% through the cycle).
SILSO smoothed minima - When the sky repeats [EXACT]
Mars returns to that day’s point of its orbit on May 12, 2028; Jupiter — in 2033.
sidereal periods: Mars 686.98 d, Jupiter 11.862 yr - How far the sky has drifted since [EXACT]
The vernal point has shifted 864″ since that day; the real constellations now sit 24° 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/ap090721.html
NASA APOD
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