They also failed to realize the sun doesn't spend an equal amount of time lined up with each constellation, so each constellation doesn't fit neatly into a one-month period. What's more, the Babylonians completely ignored a 13th constellation, called Ophiuchus, in order to preserve their 12-month calendar. "Now, 3,000 years later, the sky has shifted because Earth's axis (North Pole) doesn't point in quite the same direction." "When the Babylonians first invented the 12 signs of zodiac, a birthday between about July 23 and August 22 meant being born under the constellation Leo," NASA wrote. Here's the math NASA usedĮarth's axis has shifted since the concept of the zodiac was first invented, so the constellations don't correspond to the same time periods anymore. Turns out, that early estimate doesn't hold up to modern astronomical observations. Roughly 3,000 years ago, the Babylonians picked 12 constellations and assigned one to each month of the year.
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