Star Constellation

A group of fixed stars. Star formations have been interpreted according to groups since ancient times. Today there are 88 officially recognised star constellations.

The star constellations along the ecliptic gave the signs of the zodiac their names but are not identical with them. At the time when the zodiac was developed they were in roughly the same positions. However, the precession has caused them to move in relation to the tropical zodiac so that they are now about one sign apart. This has caused many to falsely conclude that astrologers work with the "wrong" constellations: The critics then argue that Leo is actually now Cancer because the Sun stood against the backdrop of the constellation of Cancer at the time of birth. However, the critics are mistaken because Western astrologers work with the tropical zodiac and not the star constellations which gave the signs of the zodiac their names. The tropical zodiac upon which their work is based by definition always begins at the spring equinox - the point which shifts due to the precession - and the resulting circle is divided into twelve equal segments. In this respect, the twelve signs of the zodiac also differ from the star constellations which are of unequal size.