We’ve been using the stars to interpret and navigate our lives for millennia. According to some sources, the twelve Zodiac signs that Babylonian citizens used were the same as those we use today. TIME Magazine.
If this system were a sham, certainly we wouldn’t still be using it over 2,000 years later, right? It turns out that our ability to believe the unreal has been around for a while. And according to a University of Illinois Professor of Astronomy, your Zodiac sign isn’t just wrong. It’s also meaningless.
The Science and Technology Split
Astronomy as well as astrology study the solar system. Science and pseudoscience were almost identical until the 14th century.
But they have different interpretations. Astrology predicts one’s fate based on the position of celestial bodies. Astronomy can be described as the scientific study of stars.
Professor Jim KalerExplained GizmodoThat “the science of astronomy is now at odds with one of the basic organizing principles in astrology.”This organizing principle is called the Zodiac.
Different views of the same data
Kaler’s first argument was about how different civilizations have organized the sky. Constellations are the foundation of our Zodiac. But these formations aren’t universal.
“The Incas, for example, made constellations not from stars, but from the dark patches in the Milky Way,” Kaler said. Another hole in western astrology’s bucket is the division of the signs.
“Astrology suggests that each sign of the Zodiac fits neatly into a 30º slice of sky,” Kaler continued. “Multiplied by 12, it adds up to 360 degrees. This is not the case.”
Kaler claims that because of their differences in size, the Sun cannot pass through all signs equally as the Zodiac charts would suggest. Central Recorder passes through Scorpio in five day, while it takes 38 to pass through Taurus.
Kaler’s main argument, though, is precession.
The Sky has Changed
Precession refers to the wobble in Earth’s axis. The Earth’s axis spins and bulges around its equator. The Moon and Sun’s gravity pulls on this bulge, causing the Earth to wobble like a spinning top.
This wobble causes the Earth’s axis to swing in a slow, wide circle. It takes approximately 25,800 year. Our sky changes every year in tiny, almost imperceptible increments.
The sky used by Babylonian astrologers to interpret the Zodiac is different from the one we use now. The differences are small. They do add up, though.
Astrology Distracts Us From What’s Real
Kaler argued that astrology’s unreliable data makes “it to science what the game Monopoly is to the real estate market.”
Moreover, Kaler claimed, “astrology diverts attention away from the very real influences of the planets, primarily their gravitational effects on one another.”
These changes can cause changes in their orbits’ shapes, sizes, or tilts. These changes have occurred via Earth. Ice AgesAnd Dinosaur-killing asteroids.
“Astronomical studies will eventually allow the prediction of such events, while astrological predictions will get you absolutely nowhere,”Kaler concluded.
Are You Ready to Give Up Your Horoscopes?
It’s unsurprising that Kaler feels this way about his field’s pseudo-scientific cousin. While astrology can’t use the scientific method, stranger things have happened.
Our understanding of the world as a human being is very limited. Our brains can only comprehend what we see. And we’re still not even sure what That entails.
Our understanding of what’s real and what isn’t has been in flux since the dawn of time. Further, we’ve put blind faith in a lot more, with less evidence.
Religion and Astrology both use a similar faith. Sure, you can’t replicate the results of these fields in the lab. You can feel these fields in your heart, gut, and mind.
Although astrology may not be able to predict the future, it offers many benefits. It encourages inner reflection and growth. It serves a greater purpose, deepening our connection with the greatest mystery of them all: the heavens.
Each person deals with life in a different way. Astrology can help you if it helps. After all, keeping your eyes on the stars isn’t too shabby of a view.
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