Although neither astrology system recognizes Ophiuchus as a sign, some sidereal astrologers may use it in their profession. The serpent-bearer constellation is located between the late degrees of the fixed water sign Scorpio and the early degrees of the mutable fire sign Sagittarius.
In This Article...
Is Ophiuchus an uncommon species?
Aries is the second rarest zodiac sign, followed by Sagittarius, both of which are fire signs, according to Stardust.
According to Stardust, the first sign of the zodiac is Aries, which has a spark of creativity that “gets everyone going and moving.” According to Stardust, Sagittarius, the third rarest zodiac sign, “falls during the autumn season and are renowned to be adventurous and free-spirited.”
What is the distance between Ophiuchus and Earth?
With an area of 948 square degrees, Ophiuchus is the 11th largest constellation in the sky. It’s one among the 15 constellations that may be seen from the equator. It can be visible at latitudes between +80 and -80 degrees in the southern hemisphere’s third quadrant (SQ3). Aquila, Hercules, Libra, Sagittarius, Scorpius, and Serpens are the constellations that are close by.
Rasalhague, Alpha Ophiuchi, is the brightest star in the constellation, with an apparent magnitude of 2.08. The Ophiuchids, Northern May Ophiuchids, Southern May Ophiuchids, and Theta Ophiuchids are the four meteor showers associated with the constellation.
Along with Aquila, Ara, Centaurus, Corona Australis, Corvus, Crater, Crux, Cygnus, Hercules, Hydra, Lupus, Lyra, Sagitta, Scutum, Sextans, Serpens, Triangulum Australe, and Vulpecula, Ophiuchus is part of the Hercules constellation family.
Messier 9 (M9, NGC 6333), Messier 10 (M10, NGC 6254), Messier 12 (M12, NGC 6218), Messier 14 (M14, NGC 6402), Messier 19 (M19, NGC 6273), Messier 62 (M62, NGC 6266), and Messier 107 (M107, NGC 6266) are the Messier objects in Ophiuchus (M107, NGC 6171). There are additional seven known planets among the stars.
There are 11 named stars in this constellation. Barnard’s Star, Cebalrai, Guniibuu, Mahsati, Marfik, Rasalhague, Rosaladecastro, Sabik, Timir, Yed Posterior, and Yed Prior are the proper names of stars that have been formally accepted by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
When is the best time to see Ophiuchus?
In the Northern Hemisphere, Ophiuchus is visible in the evening from late spring to early autumn, and its center is at right ascension 17h20m and declination 8o. The greatest time to observe Ophiuchus each year is on June 11th, when it is directly opposite the Sun in the sky, reaching its highest peak at local midnight.
Is Ophiuchus a divine being?
The Serpent Bearer is the constellation Ophiuchus. From June to October, this enormous constellation can be viewed in the night sky. Despite the fact that the majority of the stars are faint, Ophiuchus’ teapot form makes it easier to locate.
The constellation is made up of three separate figures. Serpens Caput is in Ophiuchus’ left hand, and Serpens Cauda is in his right. He is north of Scorpius and south of Hercules.
In Greek mythology, Ophiuchus represents Asclepius, the god of medicine. Asclepius was Apollo’s son and was tutored by the Centaur Chiron. He discovered how to resurrect the dead, which alarmed Hades. The underworld god asked his brother Zeus to assassinate the medicine god. To commemorate him, Zeus struck him dead and then placed the figure of Asclepius in the sky.
In this constellation, there aren’t many bright stars, yet one stands out. A recurrent nova is a type of star like RS Ophiuchi. These weird things are dark for a long time before suddenly brightening. The brightest star is Ras Alhague, which is the serpent bearer’s head.
There are several celestial objects in Ophiuchus. The constellation has multiple clusters and one nebula.
What is the color of Ophiuchus?
Rasalhague, which means “Head of the Snake Charmer” in Arabic, is another name for the star. Eta Ophiuchi and Zeta Ophiuchi are two stars in the constellation Ophiuchus. Eta Ophiuchi is a bright blue giant with a reddish tint due to interstellar dust on its knees.
What are the signs that I’m an Ophiuchus?
These indicators, on the other hand, are not well calibrated. Using a celestial planisphere, we can observe that the Sun is in one of the lesser-known constellations, Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer or snake charmer, between November 30 and December 18. Those born between these dates are obligated to be born under the zodiac sign of Ophiuchus.
If we continue to observe the link between the location of the Sun and the background of stars, we will notice that very little corresponds to the horoscope-based calendar of signs:
TABLE: Actual zodiac signs, as defined by the International Astronomical Union’s (IAU) constellation boundaries established in 1930.
Why does Ophiuchus not appear in the horoscope as a zodiac constellation? Why aren’t the dates the same? The reason for this is that when the horoscope was created 2,500 years ago in ancient Babylon, the Sun crossed over each of the zodiac constellations on different dates than it does today, around four weeks sooner.
According to modern scientists, the Sun enters Aries on April 19 every year like clockwork. The Sun, however, is like a clock that lags about a quarter of an hour each year due to the Earth’s axial precession. Over many years, the delay has grown to the point where the Sun now enters Aries almost a month after the Babylonians recorded the date and the horoscopes predict.
Theoretically, each person’s horoscope correlates to the sign that comes before the one that their present horoscope denotes. This, however, is not the case. The Sun only spends a week crossing Scorpio, and a month and a half in Virgo; these passage times are the same now as they were 2,500 years ago, and differ greatly from the Babylonian astrologers’ arbitrary division of one month for each sign of the horoscope, which omitted Ophiuchus in favor of a rounder number of 12 signs, as in the 12-month calendar.
Babylonian astrologers were able to determine when summer would arrive and when the best time to harvest would be by using that calendar. The social authority this gave them prompted them to broaden their forecasts to include things like the outcome of a fight or an individual’s characteristics based on their zodiac sign.
What is the spirit animal of Ophiuchus?
Were you born between the 30th of November and the 18th of December?
On your birthday, the sun will most likely pass in front of the constellation Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer.
I’m almost expecting to hear someone say:
You’re entirely correct. Because Ophiuchus is a constellation rather than a zodiac sign, this is the case. Continue reading to learn more about the differences between astrological signs and astronomical constellations, when and where to look for Ophiuchus, the deep-sky gems it holds, its mythology, science, and more.
Signs versus constellations
On August and September evenings, the Serpent Bearer stands tall in the south to southwest sky from Northern Hemisphere latitudes. Ophiuchus is closer to above from the Southern Hemisphere. Antares, the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius the Scorpionis, is also close by.
The International Astronomical Union (IAU) drew up the official boundary lines for all 88 constellations in the 1930s. Rasalhague, Ophiuchus’ brightest star, and Antares, Scorpius’ brightest star, are labeled in the photo below of the constellation Ophiuchus. Rasalhague is a bright star that marks Ophiuchus’ head, although it pales in comparison to Antares, the star that depicts the Scorpion’s beating heart.
Ophiuchus is in a bad way. Despite the fact that the ecliptic passes through him, no one ever claims him as a birth sign. After all, the zodiac band stretches 8 degrees north and south of the ecliptic, with a total width of 16 degrees. The constellations aren’t evenly distributed along this area in our sky, either. Everyone who reads astrological advice online is familiar with the zodiac signs. There are 12 zodiac signs: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, and so forth. However, there is no Ophiuchus.
However, the moon and planets pass through Ophiuchus on a regular basis. Likewise, the sun. From roughly November 30 to December 18, the sun is in front of Ophiuchus.
Around November 21, or anytime the sun is exactly 30 degrees west of the December solstice point, the sun is said to enter the sign of Sagittarius. On the December 21 solstice, the sun enters the sign of Capricorn. So, regardless of the sun shining in front of the constellation Ophiuchus from November 30 to December 18, the sun passes through the sign Sagittarius for the month leading up to the December solstice.
By the way, in around 72 years, the December solstice point advances one degree westward in front of the zodiacal constellationsor backdrop stars. By the year 2269, the December solstice point will have finally moved into the constellation Ophiuchus.
When and where to locate Ophiuchus
Summer in the Northern Hemisphere is the ideal time to see Ophiuchus (Southern Hemisphere winter). Late July and early August in the Northern Hemisphere show this constellation high in the southern sky during twilight and early evening. On fall evenings in the Northern Hemisphere, it can be visible in the southwest sky.
This relatively large constellation lies to the north of Scorpius the Scorpion and to the south of Hercules the Hero in the sky. If you’re familiar with the brightest star in Scorpius, Antares, try star-hopping to Ophiuchus from this crimson beauty. The star Rasalhague appears on Ophiuchus’ skull (Alpha Ophiuchi).
In tradition and in the sky, Ophiuchus is associated with the Serpent constellation.
If you have a dark sky, you might notice that this is one constellation that looks exactly how it should: a large man holding a snake.
Ophiuchus is derived from two Greek words that signify serpent and holding.
Deep-sky objects in Ophiuchus
Take your binoculars and scan Ophiuchus, which lies in the Milky Way band and has numerous deep-sky wonders, on a night when the moon isn’t visible. For example, Ophiuchus has a lot of globular clusters. M10 and M12 are the two simplest globular clusters to see with conventional binoculars, as seen in the chart above. They seem as weak puffs of light via binoculars, but with a telescope, you can see these globular clusters for what they are. They’re massive stellar metropolis with hundreds of thousands of stars that span a hundred to a few hundred light-years in diameter.
The Pipe Nebula, a massive interstellar cloud of gas and dust spreading across nearly 7 degrees of sky, is another big deep-sky favorite. That’s about the width of three to four fingers at arm’s length. This dark nebula is located in southern Ophiuchus at a distance of 600 to 700 light-years and can be viewed with the naked eye in a dark, transparent sky. The Pipe Nebula is located to the east of Antares and to the north of Shaula and Lesath. The above chart shows these two stars (but not the Pipe Nebula).
Ophiuchus in myth and star lore
Ophiuchus represents Asclepius, the Greek deity of medicine and doctors, in Greek mythology. He is always shown with a large serpent or snake in his hand. A snake’s venom can either kill or cure, depending on how it’s utilized. Asclepius is claimed to have manufactured a healing elixir from Serpens the Serpent’s venom, Gorgon’s blood, and an unknown herb. Until the god of the underworld, Pluto, appealed to the king of the gods, this potion granted humanity immortality. Pluto urged Zeus to rethink the consequences of death’s death.
We have no idea how Pluto made his case. Maybe he just said that what never lives never dies, and that no mortal can have one without the other. Sophocles may have summed up the myth’s core theme when he said:
It is preferable to die and sleep the never-waking slumber than to live after the soul’s life has passed.
In his Four Quartets, poet T.S. Eliot may have mirrored the notion of the ever-living story:
We perish in the company of the dying:
We are born with the dead in our midst:
In any case, according to legend, Zeus seized the elixir, exiled Asclepius from Earth, and enshrined the great physician in the celestial realms. Today, the Staff of Asclepius, a symbol of the World Health Organization and other medical organizations, pays homage to this myth and mirrors the magnificent celestial shape of Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer constellation.
Ophiuchus in history and science
A supernova explosion of a star within our own Milky Way galaxy hasn’t been seen in almost 400 years. However, in the year 1604, a supernova known as Kepler’s Supernova blasted into the scene, allowing for 18 months of naked-eye sight. It sparkled in the southern hemisphere of Ophiuchus, not far from the Pipe Nebula.
Tycho’s Supernova, which lighted up Cassiopeia in 1572, was followed by Kepler’s Supernova in 1604. The Aristotelian notion of an unchangeable world outside the orbit of the moon was shattered by these supernovae, which sent shock waves through Europe’s elite. Tycho Brahe measured the 1572 supernova’s parallax, proving that it was not an atmospheric phenomenon. In reality, the supernova flashed well beyond the orbit of the moon. Shortly after, in 1604, Kepler’s Supernova seemed to hammer home the point once more.
Furthermore, in 1577, Tycho Brahe estimated the distance of a comet and discovered that it was also farther away than the moon. Aristotelians wanted to believe comets were gases burning in the atmosphere, but Tycho disproved Aristotle’s unchanging universe theory once more.
Bottom line: For nearly two weeks each year, the sun passes through the constellation Ophiuchus the Serpent Bearer, making Ophiuchus an unofficial member of the zodiac. Learn the difference between astrological signs and astronomy constellations, as well as how to find Ophiuchus.
What is the birthstone for Ophiuchus?
If you’re looking for a gift for someone born under the new Ophiuchus star sign, though, you could have a little more difficulty.
The controversial 13th sign will be absent from most zodiac jewelry collections, but how about a piece of birthstone jewelry instead?
According to the ‘new’ star sign dates, the Ophiuchus birthstone for November would be topaz or citrine, and for December it would be turquoise, tanzanite, or blue zircon.
With that in mind, scroll down to see some of our favorite Ophiuchus birthstone jewelry picks!
What makes Ophiuchus so uncommon?
Ophiuchus, the serpent carrier, is one of the least well-known constellations in the sky, despite being one of the largest. It is rarely observed because, despite its size and prominence in the summer sky, it lacks brilliant stars. The constellation Ophiuchus is surrounded by brighter, more well-known constellations.