Sky on September 21, 2018: where the Sun, Moon and planets really were

The real sky on September 21, 2018: Sun in Virgo (horoscope says "Virgo"), Moon 88% lit, planet positions from ephemerides.

The sky on September 21, 2018 — as it really was

That day the Sun stood in Virgo — 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, 88% lit; the Moon was 403,757 km away.
astronomy-engine
How far Earth has travelled since [EXACT]
8 orbits of the Sun — 7,552 million km, that is 9,823 return trips to the Moon; 2,935 rotations of Earth; with the Sun — 58.3 billion km around the Galactic centre, 2.3 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 81 million km away; today it is 246 million km (farther by 3×).
astronomy-engine; checked against JPL Horizons for 2026-09-14
Solar cycle [ESTIMATE]
That day fell in solar cycle 24, on the decline (89% through the cycle).
SILSO smoothed minima
When the sky repeats [EXACT]
Mars returns to that day’s point of its orbit on February 16, 2028; Jupiter — in 2030; a full moon exactly on this date — September 20, 2040
sidereal periods: Mars 686.98 d, Jupiter 11.862 yr
How far the sky has drifted since [EXACT]
The vernal point has shifted 396″ since that day; the real constellations now sit 24.1° 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/ap180921.html
NASA APOD

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