Find your rising sign, with your Sun and Moon
Your rising sign is the sign coming up in the east at the minute you were born, shown here in seconds with your Sun and Moon.
How each rising sign comes across
- Aries rising
Arrives first, asks later. Read as confidence even on the days it is impatience.
- Taurus rising
A pleasant voice, a slow firm handshake and no chance of being talked round.
- Gemini rising
Looks younger than the passport says and asks three questions per answer.
- Cancer rising
Strangers tell it their life story at bus stops. Always carries tissues and snacks.
- Leo rising
Walks in as if expected. Remembered after a party of fifty, often for the hair.
- Virgo rising
Tidy, exact, and seems to have read the small print. A quiet correction sounds like criticism.
- Libra rising
Dressed right for every occasion. Everyone leaves thinking it agreed with them, not always rightly.
- Scorpio rising
Holds eye contact a second too long. People sense it knows more than it says.
- Sagittarius rising
Laughs loudly, walks fast and says what everyone was thinking. Always one foot out the door.
- Capricorn rising
Looks older at twenty and younger at sixty. Taken for the one in charge on day one.
- Aquarius rising
Talks to the boss and the cleaner in one tone. Wears the thing nobody else would.
- Pisces rising
Never looks the same in two photos. Often late, and hard to stay cross with.
How the rising sign is calculated
Clock time and time zone give the moment of birth. With the city’s longitude, that moment gives the local sidereal time: the part of the zodiac on the meridian.
Because the zodiac is tilted against the equator, the latitude decides which degree meets the eastern horizon: the ascendant.
29 September 1990, 09:30, Moscow, on summer time (UTC+4): local sidereal time 8 h 31 min, latitude 55°45′ north, ascendant 25°07′ Libra. Libra rose there from 06:59 to 09:59; at 10:00 Scorpio was already rising.
The ascendant opens the first house; the full birth chart adds the other eleven and the aspects.
Rising sign questions
Can I find my rising sign without a birth time?
No, it goes round all twelve signs each day. The date alone almost always gives your Sun and, on most days, your Moon.
Where can I find my birth time?
On the birth certificate or hospital record, if anywhere. England and Wales note it only for twins and other multiple births; Scotland always does.
How fast does the rising sign change?
Every two hours on average, but unevenly: in London Aries and Pisces take under an hour, and Leo to Scorpio nearly three. South of the equator, the reverse.
Is a rising sign the same thing as an ascendant?
Yes, the ascendant is the exact degree rising in the east at birth. The rising sign is the sign it falls in.
Does my rising sign change if I move?
No, it is fixed by the moment and place of birth. A chart for your new city is a separate relocation chart.
My birth time is rounded to the hour: how wrong is the result?
Rounding hides up to 30 minutes, which changes the sign in about one case in eight. To check yours, enter the half hour either side as a window.