Meet Ophiuchus, the Snake-Bearer. Not familiar? Apparently, he’s been around as the 13th zodiac sign.
Okay, before it gets confusing, let me start with the fact that apparently, I am no longer a Gemini as I have been since I was born; I am now a Taurus. There are two schools of thought now floating about how the zodiac has now changed as we know it. One theory states, and let me quote Star Tribune’s Bill Ward, who put it simplest: “The ancient Babylonians based zodiac signs on the constellation the sun was ‘in’ on the day a person was born. During the ensuing millenniums, the moon’s gravitational pull has made the Earth “wobble” around its axis, creating about a one-month bump in the stars’ alignment”. So now, according to this school of thought, these are now the new assignments of the 12 zodiac signs:
Capricorn: January 20-February 16
Aquarius: February 16-March 11
Pisces: March 11-April 18
Aries: April 18-May 13
Taurus: May 13-June 21
Gemini: June 21-July 20
Cancer: July 20-August 10
Leo: August 10-September 16
Virgo: September 16-October 30
Libra: October 30-November 23
Scorpio: November 23-December 17
Sagittarius: December 17-January 20
But another school of thought has “added” a 13th sign, Ophiuchus, the Snake-Bearer. I put quotes on the word “added” because many astronomers have noted that since the time of ancient Babylon, there have been 13 signs, they only removed Ophiuchus because they only wanted 12, to match the 12 months. So they could soon decide to bring back the 13th sign of the zodiac, and it would look like this:
Capricorn: Jan. 20 – Feb. 16
Aquarius: Feb. 16 – March 11
Pisces: March 11- April 18
Aries: April 18 – May 13
Taurus: May 13 – June 21
Gemini: June 21 – July 20
Cancer: July 20 – Aug. 10
Leo: Aug. 10 – Sept. 16
Virgo: Sept. 16 – Oct. 30
Libra: Oct. 30 – Nov. 23
Scorpio: Nov. 23 – Nov. 29
Ophiuchus: Nov. 29 – Dec. 17
Sagittarius: Dec. 17 – Jan. 20
The only difference is that Ophiuchus ate up half of Scorpio. So what should have been all Scorpio was halved into Scorpio and Ophiuchus. But according to many astrologers, while the sign many people were born under may now be different, it shouldn’t affect horoscope readings.
Of course this would only be of consequence to people who believe in astrology and who regularly consult their horoscopes, since many faiths, especially Christians, don’t subscribe to this esoteric discipline. But I guess even those who don’t necessarily believe in zodiac signs would find the change interesting, even just on the news level. Even people who don’t read their horoscopes at the very least know what sign they are. So did your sign change? Mine did. And how do you feel about it?
