Panchang · Gochar
Gochar 2002: when each graha changes sign
In 2002, Rahu moves into Vrishabha on 16 Feb; Guru moves into Karka on 5 Jul; Shani moves into Mithuna on 22 Jul. Below is every sign change, station and asta period of the nine grahas.
Times in New York (America/New York, EST/EDT).
The grahas on 1 January 2002
Sidereal (Lahiri) sign, and from when to when. Open a graha for its whole year.
- Surya (Sun)In Dhanusince 15 Dec 2001, until 14 Jan 2002
- Chandra (Moon)In Karkasince 31 Dec 2001, until 2 Jan 2002
- Mangala (Mars)In Kumbhasince 30 Nov 2001, until 10 Jan 2002
- Budha (Mercury)In Makarasince 30 Dec 2001, until 7 Mar 2002
- Guru (Jupiter)RetrogradeIn Mithunasince 15 Jun 2001, until 5 Jul 2002
- Shukra (Venus)In Dhanusince 21 Dec 2001, until 14 Jan 2002
- Shani (Saturn)RetrogradeIn Vrishabhasince 6 Jun 2000, until 22 Jul 2002
- RahuIn Mithunasince 30 Jul 2000, until 16 Feb 2002
- KetuIn Dhanusince 30 Jul 2000, until 16 Feb 2002
Gochar calendar for 2002
Times in New York (America/New York, EST/EDT). Each is the same instant everywhere on Earth. The Moon changes sign every two and a half days, so its list is on its own page.
Sign changeRetrograde / directAsta / rising
January 2002
10 Jan8:43 am
Mangala enters Meena
14 Jan12:51 am
Surya enters Makara
14 Jan1:56 am
Shukra enters Makara
18 Jan3:49 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 20°36′ Makara
21 Jan3:22 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 2 Feb†
February 2002
2 Feb4:04 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
6 Feb11:10 pm
Shukra enters Kumbha
7 Feb9:00 pm
Shani turns direct at 14°09′ Vrishabha
8 Feb12:28 pm
Budha turns direct at 4°45′ Makara
12 Feb1:52 pm
Surya enters Kumbha
16 Feb2:32 pm
Rahu enters Vrishabha (moving backward)
16 Feb2:32 pm
Ketu enters Vrishchika (moving backward)
20 Feb7:44 pm
Mangala enters Mesha
24 Feb7:27 pm
Shukra rises again (asta ends)†
March 2002
1 Mar10:31 am
Guru turns direct at 11°44′ Mithuna
2 Mar10:51 pm
Shukra enters Meena
7 Mar3:04 pm
Budha enters Kumbha
14 Mar10:47 am
Surya enters Meena
23 Mar1:27 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 20 Apr†
26 Mar2:34 am
Budha enters Meena
27 Mar2:44 am
Shukra enters Mesha
April 2002
4 Apr2:30 pm
Mangala enters Vrishabha
10 Apr8:07 am
Budha enters Mesha
13 Apr8:19 pm
Surya enters Mesha
20 Apr7:10 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
20 Apr1:37 pm
Shukra enters Vrishabha
25 Apr8:20 pm
Budha enters Vrishabha
May 2002
14 May5:11 pm
Surya enters Vrishabha
15 May7:19 am
Shukra enters Mithuna
15 May2:49 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 16°06′ Vrishabha
18 May2:36 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 4 Jun†
19 May1:43 am
Mangala enters Mithuna
22 May5:29 am
Shani becomes combust (asta) until 27 Jun†
June 2002
4 Jun1:13 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
8 Jun11:12 am
Budha turns direct at 7°28′ Vrishabha
9 Jun11:30 am
Shukra enters Karka
14 Jun11:44 pm
Surya enters Mithuna
17 Jun6:01 am
Mangala becomes combust (asta) until 30 Sep†
27 Jun11:21 am
Shani rises again (asta ends)†
July 2002
3 Jul7:49 pm
Budha enters Mithuna
3 Jul11:38 pm
Mangala enters Karka
4 Jul8:14 pm
Guru becomes combust (asta) until 3 Aug†
5 Jul2:55 am
Guru enters Karka
5 Jul7:49 am
Shukra enters Simha
8 Jul12:00 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 3 Aug†
16 Jul10:32 am
Surya enters Karka
18 Jul9:52 pm
Budha enters Karka
22 Jul10:42 pm
Shani enters Mithuna
August 2002
1 Aug10:11 am
Shukra enters Kanya
2 Aug7:37 pm
Budha enters Simha
3 Aug12:15 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
3 Aug9:25 pm
Guru rises again (asta ends)†
16 Aug6:53 pm
Surya enters Simha
19 Aug8:13 pm
Mangala enters Simha
21 Aug7:49 pm
Budha enters Kanya
31 Aug5:43 pm
Shukra enters Tula
September 2002
14 Sep3:37 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 19°21′ Kanya
16 Sep6:47 pm
Surya enters Kanya
21 Sep1:32 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 4 Oct†
30 Sep5:35 pm
Mangala rises again (asta ends)†
October 2002
4 Oct2:55 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
5 Oct11:39 pm
Mangala enters Kanya
6 Oct3:26 pm
Budha turns direct at 4°26′ Kanya
10 Oct2:33 pm
Shukra turns retrograde at 21°43′ Tula
11 Oct8:31 am
Shani turns retrograde at 5°11′ Mithuna
17 Oct6:45 am
Surya enters Tula
23 Oct4:25 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 9 Dec†
26 Oct7:19 am
Shukra becomes combust (asta) until 5 Nov†
28 Oct1:50 am
Budha enters Tula
November 2002
5 Nov7:29 am
Shukra rises again (asta ends)†
15 Nov9:45 am
Budha enters Vrishchika
16 Nov5:35 am
Surya enters Vrishchika
21 Nov2:13 am
Shukra turns direct at 6°10′ Tula
21 Nov9:11 pm
Mangala enters Tula
December 2002
4 Dec7:05 am
Guru turns retrograde at 24°13′ Karka
4 Dec3:44 pm
Budha enters Dhanu
9 Dec6:20 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
15 Dec8:14 pm
Surya enters Dhanu
25 Dec8:29 pm
Budha enters Makara
† Practice varies. Texts and almanacs give slightly different asta limits, and some almanacs use the true rather than the mean node for Rahu and Ketu, which can move the nodes’ sign changes by some weeks.
See also: Transits over your chart · Gochar (glossary) · Sade Sati · Ayanamsa · Sankranti
Understand
What gochar is
Gochar means the movement of the grahas: each moves on through the zodiac, and when it crosses from one rasi into the next, that is its sign change (sankramana). This page only says which graha is where, and when. In the classical method gochar is read by counting from a person’s natal Moon sign; to see today’s sky against your own chart, open the transits tool.
Retrograde (vakri) and direct (margi)
Seen from the Earth, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn now and then appear to move backward for a while. That is retrograde motion; the instant the graha stops and turns is a station, and moving forward again is turning direct. It is an effect of the Earth and the planet moving on their orbits at different speeds. The Sun and Moon are never retrograde; Rahu and Ketu (mean) always move backward.
Combustion (asta)
A graha very close to the Sun is lost in its glare; the texts call it asta (set), and its reappearance udaya (rising). The Surya Siddhanta gives a distance limit for each graha. The limits used here: Mangala 17°, Budha 14° (12° when retrograde), Guru 11°, Shukra 10° (8° when retrograde), Shani 15°. Almanacs leave out the asta periods of Guru and Shukra when choosing times for samskaras such as weddings.
Sidereal signs
Indian almanacs count the rasis against the stars (nirayana). Western (tropical) signs run about 24° ahead, so the dates printed there are about three weeks earlier than these. The ayanamsa used here is Lahiri.
How this is calculated
Each graha’s apparent geocentric position from NASA JPL’s DE421 ephemeris, less the Lahiri ayanamsa. The instants of crossing a rasi edge, of zero speed and of reaching the asta limit are found by bisection to under a second. Small differences in ayanamsa can move a slow graha’s time (Shani above all) by a few hours against other almanacs.
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