Showing posts with label zodiac. Show all posts

Sunday, January 16, 2011

New Zodiac Sign is 13th. Other Signs Change Dates

The Irish Times - Monday, January 17, 2011

Zodiac now 13-strong as Ophiuchus signs in

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CÍAN NIHILL

THINK YOU’RE a Pisces? Think again, because the star sign you thought was yours may be incorrect. That’s according to an astronomer who has discovered there are 13, not 12, zodiac signs.

The internet exploded last week when Parke Kunkle discussed the newest sign, Ophiuchus, in an interview with American broadcaster NBC, propelling the topic to “trending” status on twitter for several days.

Kunkle, a professor in the Minnesota Community and Technical College, talked about how a wobble in the Earth’s axis had caused a change in star constellations. As a result, there is a new sign, Ophiuchus – better known as the serpent holder – that wasn’t present 3,000 years ago when Babylonians introduced zodiac.

Prof Luke Drury, head of the astronomy and astrophysics section of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, explained the process, known as “precession”.

“If you think of the Earth as a wobbling or spinning top that is not quite vertical, the spin top moves around in a shape a bit like a cone. The Earth spins exactly the same way,” he said.

“Astronomers have known about this for a very long time. It has been one of the constant criticisms of astrology, which isn’t a science and doesn’t allow for it.”

While the sign many people were born under may change, it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to remove that scorpion tattoo just yet: some astrologers, particularly in the western world, use a system that is Earth, not star, based.

The new zodiac dates are: Capricorn: Jan 20th - Feb 16th. Aquarius: Feb 16th - March 11th. Pisces: March 11th - April 18th. Aries: April 18th - May 13th. Taurus: May 13th - June 21st. Gemini: June 21st - July 20th. Cancer: July 20th - Aug 10th.

Leo: Aug 10th - Sept 16th.

Virgo: Sept 16th - Oct 30th.

Libra: Oct 30th - Nov 23rd. Scorpio: Nov 23rd - Nov 29th. Ophiuchus: Nov 29th - Dec 17th. Sagittarius: Dec 17th - Jan 20th.

Friday, January 14, 2011

New Zodiac Sign Dates Revealed

New Zodiac Sign Dates - Zodiac Signs Have Changed

January 13, 2011 11:40 AM EST

comments: 4

The New Zodiac sign dates have been released. Astronomers have revealed that the Earth is in a different spot in relation to the Sun than it was 3,000 years ago. Meaning that now the zodiac signs are outdated. Looks like it's time for an update.

Of course, since the basic principals of which the zodiac signs are calculated have changed, the signs themselves have also changed. While it makes sense, some people are outraged by their change of sign. If you follow your horoscope, you'll most definitely need to know your new zodiac sign.

According to Fox News, you're sign probably isn't your sign anymore. No wonder our horoscopes are never right. The brand new zodiac sign dates are as follows.

Capricorns will now be people with birthdays from January 20th to February 16th. The Aquarius sign will now range from February 17th to March 11th. Pisces are now considered people born on March 12th through April 18th. The Aries sign is now being reported at April 19th through the 13th of May.

People born from May 14th through June 21st are now under the Taurus sign. If your birthday is June 22nd through July 20th you're now considered a Gemini. More Summer birthdays from July 20th to August 10th are now being called Cancer, and Leo's will be those born between August 11th and September 16th.

Heading into the Fall months Virgo's are now considered those of us born between September 16th and October 30th. Birthdays ranging from October 31st to November 23rd are now being called Libra's. Scorpio's are now being reported as being born between November 23rd and December 17th, and Sagittarius will now be December 18th through the 20th of January.

Did your sign change? Does it matter? To some, yes. To others, not so much. However, to those of us who don't like change, this will be bugging us for months to come. Will we ever trust our horoscopes again?

Photo: Wikimedia

Comments: 4

http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978917493

Has Your Sign Changed?

What's your sign? Minn. prof suggests it's off

(AP) – 3 hours ago

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minneapolis astronomy professor said Friday that he's stunned by the attention he's getting for suggesting the signs of the zodiac are all wrong.

Parke Kunkle told a newspaper interviewer that the Earth's wobbly orbit means it's no longer aligned to the stars in the same way as when the signs of the zodiac were first conceived.

That means when astrologers say the sun is in Pisces, it's really in Aquarius, and so on, Kunkle said.

The story was published in Sunday editions of the Star Tribune of Minneapolis and quickly went viral, with thousands of people fretting on social networks that their sign might change.

Among them was Heather McGowan, 26, a student from Winnipeg, Manitoba, who got a red Aries symbol in a black maple leaf tattooed between her shoulders when she was 19.

"Go figure seven years later there's a possibility that I am no longer an Aries," she said, though she remains skeptical enough that she hasn't considered changing tattoos.

Kunkle, who teaches at Minneapolis Community and Technical College, said Friday that all the hubbub is based on "2,000-year-old information." He can't understand why his explanation of how a well-known wobble in the earth's orbit throws off astrology charts turned into an Internet sensation.

"Astronomers have known about this since about 130 BC," Kunkle said while sitting in his office, where the phone rang constantly, as he said it had been since the article came out.

"This is not new news. I have no idea why it went viral this time," Kunkel said. "Almost every astronomy class talks about it."

Shelley Ackerman, an astrologer and spokeswoman for American Federation of Astrologers, said she's been swamped with e-mails from worried clients whose signs would change under the new system. Ackerman said she advises the clients not to overreact.

"This doesn't change your chart at all. I'm not about to use it," she said. "I've told all of them not to worry about it. Every few years a story like this comes out and scares the living daylights out of everyone, but it'll go away as quickly as it came."

Ackerman said there are an infinite number of ways to divide the constellations, and that scientists are continually discovering new stars and solar systems. Astrologers don't change their systems for every new change, she said.

"Just as in medicine when there are new discoveries you don't change the entire system, you just work with it to see if and where it fits into existing system," she said.

Kate Agliata, 36, a freelance writer and mother of two in Birmingham, Ala., says she'll stay true to her original sign, even though she may now be a Pisces.

"Let's just say I won't be swapping out my Aries coffee mug anytime soon," she said, though she allowed it might make for heavier horoscope reading. "I have a feeling that from here on out, I'll feel inclined to read Pisces as well."

Kunkle said he's gotten a few angry calls, including one from someone who said, "Please give me my sign back."

But he said he was having fun with it, patiently answering phone calls from journalists all over the world.

Maybe it will make people more interested in the science of astronomy, he said: "I hope people go out and look more at the stars."

Dinesh Ramde in Milwaukee and Erin Vanderberg in Philadelphia contributed to this report.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j8fELrRCAaBx-Mx7eC2lcIB_PLjw?docId=a78d6f091cd1422a87a9e1cd306a0a8d