Planet Aspects: Every Pairing of the Ten Planets
Planets tell you which forces are at work; aspects tell you how those forces interact. Ten planets make 45 pairs, and each pair can form up to five major aspects. Leaving out the ones that cannot occur in the sky and the ones that have not occurred in modern times, that comes to 208 combinations, and every cell in the table below links to its own page. For the basics (orbs, applying and separating), see Aspects: The Basics.
45 planet pairs × five aspects
| Planet pair | Conjunction | Sextile | Square | Trine | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun × Moon | Conjunction 5.3% | Sextile 7.7% | Square 9.8% | Trine 10% | Opposition 5.6% |
| Sun × Mercury | Conjunction 29.6% | — | — | — | — |
| Sun × Venus | Conjunction 15.4% | — | — | — | — |
| Sun × Mars | Conjunction 9% | Sextile 10.9% | Square 10% | Trine 6.1% | Opposition 2% |
| Sun × Jupiter | Conjunction 6.6% | Sextile 8.7% | Square 9.9% | Trine 9% | Opposition 4.5% |
| Sun × Saturn | Conjunction 6.2% | Sextile 8.2% | Square 10% | Trine 9.5% | Opposition 5% |
| Sun × Uranus | Conjunction 5.7% | Sextile 8% | Square 10% | Trine 9.8% | Opposition 5.4% |
| Sun × Neptune | Conjunction 5.5% | Sextile 7.6% | Square 10.1% | Trine 10.1% | Opposition 5.6% |
| Sun × Pluto | Conjunction 5.7% | Sextile 7.9% | Square 9.9% | Trine 9.8% | Opposition 5.3% |
| Moon × Mercury | Conjunction 5.5% | Sextile 7.8% | Square 10.3% | Trine 10.2% | Opposition 5.5% |
| Moon × Venus | Conjunction 5.5% | Sextile 7.7% | Square 10.5% | Trine 9.9% | Opposition 5.4% |
| Moon × Mars | Conjunction 5.5% | Sextile 7.9% | Square 10.1% | Trine 9.7% | Opposition 5.5% |
| Moon × Jupiter | Conjunction 5.6% | Sextile 7.7% | Square 10% | Trine 10.3% | Opposition 5.6% |
| Moon × Saturn | Conjunction 5.5% | Sextile 8% | Square 10.3% | Trine 9.8% | Opposition 5.4% |
| Moon × Uranus | Conjunction 5.6% | Sextile 7.5% | Square 9.9% | Trine 10% | Opposition 5.8% |
| Moon × Neptune | Conjunction 5.7% | Sextile 7.8% | Square 10% | Trine 10.1% | Opposition 5.6% |
| Moon × Pluto | Conjunction 5.6% | Sextile 7.7% | Square 10% | Trine 10% | Opposition 5.6% |
| Mercury × Venus | Conjunction 13.5% | Sextile 9.7% | — | — | — |
| Mercury × Mars | Conjunction 7.5% | Sextile 6.7% | Square 8% | Trine 4.3% | Opposition 1.7% |
| Mercury × Jupiter | Conjunction 5.2% | Sextile 5.9% | Square 7.7% | Trine 6.8% | Opposition 3.7% |
| Mercury × Saturn | Conjunction 4.9% | Sextile 6.1% | Square 8% | Trine 7.6% | Opposition 4% |
| Mercury × Uranus | Conjunction 4.7% | Sextile 5.8% | Square 7.8% | Trine 7.3% | Opposition 4.2% |
| Mercury × Neptune | Conjunction 4.9% | Sextile 6% | Square 7.5% | Trine 7.7% | Opposition 3.9% |
| Mercury × Pluto | Conjunction 4.8% | Sextile 6% | Square 7.6% | Trine 7.3% | Opposition 4% |
| Venus × Mars | Conjunction 8.9% | Sextile 7% | Square 8% | Trine 6.5% | Opposition 1.6% |
| Venus × Jupiter | Conjunction 5.5% | Sextile 5.8% | Square 8.2% | Trine 6.9% | Opposition 3.9% |
| Venus × Saturn | Conjunction 4.7% | Sextile 5.6% | Square 8% | Trine 7.5% | Opposition 4.1% |
| Venus × Uranus | Conjunction 4.4% | Sextile 5.6% | Square 7.7% | Trine 7.7% | Opposition 4.2% |
| Venus × Neptune | Conjunction 4.7% | Sextile 5.5% | Square 7.8% | Trine 7.7% | Opposition 4.1% |
| Venus × Pluto | Conjunction 4.3% | Sextile 5.6% | Square 7.6% | Trine 7.6% | Opposition 4.5% |
| Mars × Jupiter | Conjunction 4.9% | Sextile 7.4% | Square 8.2% | Trine 6.5% | Opposition 5% |
| Mars × Saturn | Conjunction 4.7% | Sextile 4.9% | Square 6.6% | Trine 6.7% | Opposition 6.7% |
| Mars × Uranus | Conjunction 5% | Sextile 6.1% | Square 7.5% | Trine 7.3% | Opposition 4.3% |
| Mars × Neptune | Conjunction 3.7% | Sextile 4.8% | Square 9% | Trine 7.7% | Opposition 4.5% |
| Mars × Pluto | Conjunction 5.1% | Sextile 5.4% | Square 7.1% | Trine 6.8% | Opposition 3.1% |
| Jupiter × Saturn | Conjunction 5.9% | Sextile 6.4% | Square 7.2% | Trine 5.8% | Opposition 4.2% |
| Jupiter × Uranus | Conjunction 4.9% | Sextile 3.9% | Square 5.1% | Trine 7.1% | Opposition 5.3% |
| Jupiter × Neptune | Conjunction 3.7% | Sextile 4.9% | Square 7.3% | Trine 9% | Opposition 5% |
| Jupiter × Pluto | Conjunction 3.1% | Sextile 3.6% | Square 6.3% | Trine 7.4% | Opposition 4.5% |
| Saturn × Uranus | Conjunction 5.4% | Sextile 5.4% | Square 6.6% | Trine 6.6% | Opposition 4.7% |
| Saturn × Neptune | Conjunction 3.7% | Sextile 5.1% | Square 9% | Trine 8.2% | Opposition 4% |
| Saturn × Pluto | Conjunction 3.9% | Sextile 4.8% | Square 6% | Trine 6.7% | Opposition 6.7% |
| Uranus × Neptune | Conjunction 17.9% | Sextile 8.3% | Square | Trine | — |
| Uranus × Pluto | Conjunction 13.5% | Sextile 13.8% | Square | Trine | — |
| Neptune × Pluto | — | Sextile 73.1% | — | — | — |
Click an aspect name for the detailed reading. Percentages are the share of 8,401 charts of people born in Taipei between 1960 and 2005 with random birth times that have the aspect; aspects between slow planets cluster in particular years, so their share only reflects this period. A dash marks an aspect that cannot occur in the sky or has not occurred in modern times; an aspect with no percentage did not occur in this period but does in other years.
Browse by planet: Sun aspects, Moon aspects, Mercury aspects, Venus aspects, Mars aspects, Jupiter aspects, Saturn aspects, Uranus aspects, Neptune aspects, Pluto aspects
A chart has over a dozen aspects: which to read first
8,401 charts of people born in Taipei between 1960 and 2005 with random birth times, using the same orbs as our chart calculator.
With this many aspects, there is no need to read each one with equal care. The usual order is: start with the smallest orbs. Aspects within 1° make up only 13.6% and are usually a chart’s most vivid themes. Next, those involving the Sun or Moon, which bear directly on identity and feeling. Then the aspects of Mercury, Venus and Mars, the three personal planets. Aspects among Jupiter, Saturn and the three outer planets come last; they are mostly a backdrop shared by a whole group of people.
The nature of the five aspects
A conjunction ties two planets together so they cannot be separated; whether that helps depends on which two. A sextile joins two compatible forces: there is a chance to cooperate, but you have to use it. A square is friction: each side blocks the other, the pressure is high and so is the drive. A trine is natural ease, effortless and easily taken for granted. An opposition is a tug-of-war, often felt through a partner or rival, and the task is balance. The same pair of planets tells a very different story under a different aspect, which is why each aspect has a page of its own.
Some aspects cannot occur in the sky
Mercury and Venus orbit inside the Earth’s orbit, so seen from Earth they never stray far from the Sun. In our calculations, Mercury gets at most about 28° from the Sun, Venus at most about 48°, and Mercury and Venus at most about 74° from each other. So the Sun can only form a conjunction with Mercury or with Venus, and Mercury and Venus can only form a conjunction or a sextile. If you come across a natal reading for “Sun square Mercury” somewhere, it describes something astronomically impossible.
Aspects between slow planets are generational
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto move slowly, and an aspect between them lasts a year or two, sometimes decades. Neptune sextile Pluto, for example, is in 73.1% of charts for people born 1960–2005; it is the backdrop of a whole era and says little about any one person. The table lists the years since 1930 in which these planets formed aspects with one another. A few aspects among Uranus, Neptune and Pluto have not occurred in modern times, so they have no page.
| Planet pair | Conjunction | Sextile | Square | Trine | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturn × Uranus | 1941–1943, 1987–1989, 2031–2033 | 1934–1936, 1947–1949, 1978–1980, 1995–1997, 2025–2026 | 1930–1932, 1950–1953, 1975–1977, 1998–2001, 2020–2022 | 1955–1958, 1971–1974, 2001–2004, 2015–2018 | 1964–1968, 2007–2011 |
| Saturn × Neptune | 1951–1953, 1988–1990, 2025–2027 | 1946–1948, 1959–1960, 1981–1983, 1995–1997, 2018–2019, 2030–2032 | 1943–1945, 1962–1964, 1978–1980, 1998–2000, 2014–2016, 2033–2035 | 1930, 1941–1943, 1965–1967, 1976–1978, 2000–2002, 2011–2013, 2035 | 1935–1937, 1970–1973, 2005–2008 |
| Saturn × Pluto | 1946–1948, 1981–1983, 2019–2021 | 1942–1943, 1952–1953, 1976–1977, 1989–1990, 2012–2014, 2025–2027 | 1939–1941, 1955–1956, 1973–1975, 1992–1994, 2009–2011, 2028–2029 | 1936–1938, 1958–1960, 1970–1972, 1995–1998, 2006–2008, 2030–2032 | 1930–1932, 1964–1967, 2001–2003, 2035 |
| Uranus × Neptune | 1989–1997 | 1964–1969, 2023–2030 | 1951–1959 | 1936–1946 | none in modern times |
| Uranus × Pluto | 1962–1969 | 1941–1946, 1992–2001 | 1930–1936, 2008–2018 | 2023–2031 | none in modern times |
| Neptune × Pluto | none in modern times | 1942–2000, 2013–2035 | none in modern times | none in modern times | none in modern times |
Sampled every 3 days from 1900 to 2035 with this site’s orbs; only years from 1930 on are listed. In the first and last year of each span only people born in some months have the aspect. For Jupiter’s aspects to these planets by year, see Jupiter aspects.
Aspects do not always follow the signs
Beginners often count aspects by sign: same sign is a conjunction, three signs apart is a square, same element is a trine. That works as a rule of thumb, but an aspect is measured in actual degrees. A planet in the last few degrees of one sign and another in the first few degrees of the next are still conjunct, yet they are in different signs. In our calculations, 12.4% of all major aspects are out-of-sign like this, conjunctions most often (15.6%). An out-of-sign aspect keeps its nature but shows up in a less typical way.
Unaspected planets
A planet that forms no major aspect with any of the other nine is called unaspected. For any single planet this is uncommon, most frequent for Venus (4.8%) and Mercury (4.6%); but counting all ten together, about 26.2% of charts have at least one unaspected planet. Tradition holds that such a planet works more on its own, less tied in with the other forces.
How accurate the birth time has to be
Aspects are far more forgiving than houses. In our calculations, a birth time one hour later changes the aspect list in about 23% of charts, by only 0.3 aspects on average. With no birth time at all and the chart cast for noon, the list differs in 70.9% of charts, and in 69.8% of those the only difference is in the Moon’s aspects. So if you only know your birthday, you can read every aspect except the Moon’s with reasonable confidence, and treat the Moon’s as provisional. To recover the time, see birth time rectification.
A straight word: read an aspect as part of the whole chart
A single aspect describes the relationship between two planets. A chart has well over a dozen aspects on average, and they reinforce and offset one another. The same aspect in different signs and houses, with a tight orb or a loose one, can look very different in real life. Planetary positions are astronomical facts and can be calculated precisely; what an aspect means is astrological tradition, not scientific law. Everything on this site is for reference and entertainment only; for health, investment or legal matters, please consult a professional.
Cast your own chart and see which aspects you have
Enter your birth date, birth time and birthplace, and the aspects between the ten planets are listed from the tightest orb to the widest, each marked as applying or separating. Everything is calculated in your browser.
Planet aspects FAQ
How do I read the aspects in my birth chart?
Cast your chart and look at the aspect list. The aspects with the smallest orbs matter most; next come those involving the Sun or Moon, then Mercury, Venus and Mars. For each aspect, take what the two planets govern and read it through the nature of the aspect (fusion, cooperation, friction, ease, tension). We have written a page for each of the 208 combinations, so you can look yours up directly.
Are squares and oppositions bad aspects?
No. These two aspects bring pressure and tension, and they are also a source of drive. A chart made up entirely of trines and sextiles is steadier but has less push behind it. Astrology does not sort aspects simply into good and bad; what counts is how you use the tension.
Why is there no reading for Sun square Mercury or Sun opposite Venus?
Because they cannot occur in the sky. Mercury gets at most about 28° from the Sun and Venus at most about 48°, both short of the distance a sextile needs, so in a birth chart the Sun can only be conjunct these two planets. Such aspects only appear in synastry between two people’s charts or in transits.
How many aspects does a chart usually have?
In our calculations the ten planets form 14.8 major aspects on average, with a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 34. More aspects does not mean a better or a more complicated chart; what matters is the few with the smallest orbs.
Can I read my aspects without a birth time?
Yes, apart from the Moon’s. Planets move only a little in a day; the Moon alone covers twelve to fifteen degrees. In our calculations, with the time unknown and the chart cast for noon, the Moon’s aspects differ from the real ones in 66.5% of charts, while most other aspects are unaffected.