Astronomy has nothing to do with the Age of Aquarius. It’s an astrological age that happens due to precession, a natural motion of the Earth. The identify of the Pole Star changes throughout time due to precession. The precession cycle lasts 25,800 years. There are also 12 zodiac constellations. As a result, around the time of the vernal equinox, the sun’s position in front of the background stars moves in front of a new zodiacal constellation every 2,150 years. At that point, a new epoch might be considered to have begun.
The vernal equinox point, also known as the March or spring equinox point, is the position of the sun in the sky at the vernal equinox. When the vernal equinox point moves from in front of the constellation Pisces to in front of the constellation Aquarius, the Age of Aquarius is said to begin.
When that happens, there should be a definitive answer. At the time of the equinox, when will the sun be in front of Aquarius? When will the Aquarius Age begin?
However, there are no easy answers. The answer to this frequently asked question can be found in a variety of ways.
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Age of Aquarius in astronomy
Let’s have a look at the answer from the standpoint of astronomy. The International Astronomical Union (or IAU) took on the task of officially naming and defining all things astronomical in the twentieth century. In 1930, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) established “official” constellation borders. As a result, astronomers tend to use IAU constellation borders to date the start of the Age of Aquarius. Astrologers and New Age practitioners, on the other hand, may or may not employ the same limits.
Jean Meeus, a well-known Belgian astronomer and mathematician, is one of the IAU’s adherents. In 68 B.C., the sun went from being in front of the constellation Aries to being in front of the constellation Pisces, according to his calculations. Looking ahead, the March equinox will pass into the constellation Aquarius in 2597, according to Meeus.
These are the astronomical dates, which are based on the IAU constellation limits, which were established in 1930.
The size of the constellations as defined by the IAU varies. Astrologers, on the other hand, frequently divide the zodiac into 12 equal sectors. So that’s one major distinction between astronomers and astrologers when it comes to constellations.
You must also examine when the Age of Pisces began in order to determine when the Age of Aquarius begins. There appears to be no solid agreement among astrologers as to when the Age of Pisces began. As a result, no one knows when the Age of Aquarius begins. Nicholas Campion suggests that the estimated dates for entering the Age of Aquarius span from 1447 A.D. to 3597 A.D. in his book The Book of World Horoscopes. Campion also looked at astrological sources for published material on the issue. He asserts that most authors believe the Age of Aquarius began in the twentieth century (29 claims). The twenty-fourth century comes in second (12 claims). Campion, by the way, is the director of the Sophia Centre at the University of Wales, Lampeter, as well as the Course Director for the M.A. in Cultural Astronomy and Astrology. Here are Campion’s credentials.
Did it begin in 2012?
According to some astrologers, the Age of Aquarius began in 2012. This is because they believe the star Regulus in the constellation Leo the Lion marks the ancient boundary between Leo and Cancer constellations. In 2012, this star passed within 30 degrees of the September equinox, indicating that Regulus transitioned from the sign of Leo to the sign of Virgo. The border of the constellations Pisces and Aquarius is 150 degrees west of Regulus, or near the March equinox point, assuming equal-sized constellations in antiquity. According to this calendar, the Age of Aquarius began in 2012.
As you can see, many people have a clear grasp on how to compute the start of an age. However, there is no agreement among the numerous people who are performing the calculations. See what various authors have claimed in these Wikipedia lists.
To be clear, we at EarthSky approach the topic from an astronomical standpoint. Please show us more methods of calculating the Age of Aquarius if any qualified astrologers are willing to do so! We look forward to hearing from you.
By the way, Terry MacKinnell reacted to our request for comments by asserting that in ancient Babylon, a new zodiacal constellation appearing over the eastern horizon before sunrise on the morning of the Northern Hemisphere spring equinox signaled the beginning of a new era. More information can be found at An Age-Old Mistake That Still Haunts Astrologers.
>Definition of terms: Vernal equinox point
The vernal equinox, often known as the March or spring equinox, is a point on the imaginary celestial sphere that surrounds Earth. The celestial equator, or line around the sky just above Earth’s equator, intersects the ecliptic, or path of the sun across our sky. Because the sun used to be in front of the constellation Aries at the time of the vernal equinox, it’s also known as the First Point in Aries. The sun has been in front of the constellation Pisces at the time of the equinox for the past 2,000 years. The significance of the so-called Piscean Age is as follows. The sun will pass through Aquarius at some time during the equinox. The Age of Aquarius begins on that date.
How did the Age of Aquarius enter popular culture?
In the United States, the Age of Aquarius is connected with the hippies of the 1960s and 1970s, as well as the New Age movement. The arrival of the Aquarian age has been connected with… well, harmony and understanding, sympathy and trust aplenty in both situations. That brings us to the smash-hit musical from 1967 “The 5th Dimension’s Aquarius serves as the opening song for the film Hair. The first lines of the song were:
It’s difficult to put into words how I felt “Hair, which still appears daring now, had an impact on audiences when it premiered on Broadway in 1968. It went on to have 1,750 Broadway performances and 1,997 London performances, with parallel productions in locations around the United States and Europe, as well as supporting records (the original Broadway cast recording sold three million copies). This Broadway musical almost single-handedly launched the Aquarian Age notion into mainstream culture in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Although the video below isn’t the original, it gives you a good sense.
Bottom line: The Age of Aquarius begins when the March equinox point shifts from Pisces to Aquarius.
But there’s no way of knowing when it will happen.
Is the year 2021 the beginning of the Age of Aquarius?
The Age of Aquarius is now in full swing. For many, there was a noticeable shift in energy from 2020 to 2021, albeit both years were a roller coaster. Apart with navigating the Covid era, we’ve also been told that we’ve entered a new astrological phase.
What makes it unique? That’s where things get a bit tricky, but we’ve sought the expertise of psychic and astrologer Inbaal Honigman to help us figure it out. However, keep in mind that the Age of Aquarius is frequently linked to social action, equality, and advancement. Finally. Everything you need to know is right here…
When does the Age of Aquarius start?
The precise commencement date of this new epoch is debatable. Some astrologers believe it will begin on the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere on March 20, 2021, while others, like as Kelly, believe it will begin in December 2020. “She explains, “It’s more intellectual than you might assume.” “There is no clear agreement on when it will begin. What we do know is that this is a period associated with hope and creativity in general. When it happened last, in the 19th century, it was a time of technological, industrial, and government revolutions. All of these characteristics are Aquarian.”
When did the Age of Aquarius begin, and when will it come to an end?
The average time it takes for the vernal equinox to migrate from one zodiac constellation to the next is around 2,160 years for each age. Divide the earth’s 25,800-year gyroscopic precession time by 12, the number of zodiac signs, to get this average. Because the length of time it takes for a complete precession is currently rising, this is simply a rough calculation. A more precise set of data is 25,772 years for a whole cycle and 2,147.5 years for each astrological age. The approximate dates for entering the Age of Aquarius, according to various astrologers’ calculations, range from 1447 CE (Terry MacKinnell) to 3597 CE (John Addey).
Astrologers disagree on when the Aquarian age will begin, if it has begun at all. Campion (1999) cites a number of sources, mostly astrological, for the beginning of the Age of Aquarius. Most published writings on the subject state that the Age of Aquarius began in the twentieth century (29 claims), with the 24th century coming in second with 12 claimants, according to Campion’s overview.
The precession of the equinoxes is thought to be linked to astrological eras. The diurnal rotation of the earth on its own axis and the annual revolution of the earth around the sun have no bearing on the steady wobbling of the earth’s rotation axis on the celestial sphere. The location of the sun in one of the 12 zodiac constellations at the vernal (Spring) equinox, which corresponds to the moment the sun crosses the celestial equator, marking the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere each year, has traditionally been used to calibrate this 25,800-year cycle for the purposes of determining astrological ages. Every 2,150 years, the sun will have migrated into a new zodiacal constellation at the time of the vernal equinox.
The 88 official constellations were determined by the International Astronomical Union in 1929. The Aquarian Age formally begins approximately 2600 CE, when the border between Pisces and Aquarius is created. Because of the different sizes and overlap of the zodiacal constellations, many astrologers disagree with this theory. They prefer the long-established practice of naming the 12 backdrop zodiacal constellations with equally-sized signs spaced every 30 degrees down the ecliptic.
Is the year 2022 the Year of Aquarius?
Make a note on your calendars: The Aquarius season runs from January 19 to February 18 in the year 2022. Jupiter will be in Pisces during this time, while Venus and Mercury’s retrograde periods will be over. This all happens just days before Pluto’s return to the United States in 2022, one of the most anticipated astrological events of the year.