Panchang · Gochar
Gochar 2020: when each graha changes sign
In 2020, Shani moves into Makara on 23 Jan; Guru moves into Makara on 29 Mar; Guru moves into Dhanu on 29 Jun; Rahu moves into Vrishabha on 23 Sep; Guru moves into Makara on 20 Nov. Below is every sign change, station and asta period of the nine grahas.
Times in Chicago (America/Chicago, CST/CDT).
The grahas on 1 January 2020
Sidereal (Lahiri) sign, and from when to when. Open a graha for its whole year.
- Surya (Sun)In Dhanusince 16 Dec 2019, until 14 Jan 2020
- Chandra (Moon)In Kumbhasince 29 Dec 2019, until 1 Jan 2020
- Mangala (Mars)In Vrishchikasince 25 Dec 2019, until 7 Feb 2020
- Budha (Mercury)In Dhanusince 25 Dec 2019, until 13 Jan 2020
- Guru (Jupiter)In Dhanusince 4 Nov 2019, until 29 Mar 2020
- Shukra (Venus)In Makarasince 15 Dec 2019, until 8 Jan 2020
- Shani (Saturn)In Dhanusince 26 Oct 2017, until 23 Jan 2020
- RahuIn Mithunasince 6 Mar 2019, until 23 Sep 2020
- KetuIn Dhanusince 6 Mar 2019, until 23 Sep 2020
Gochar calendar for 2020
Times in Chicago (America/Chicago, CST/CDT). 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 2020
8 Jan4:53 pm
Shukra enters Kumbha
10 Jan10:54 am
Guru rises again (asta ends)†
13 Jan12:05 am
Budha enters Makara
14 Jan2:38 pm
Surya enters Makara
23 Jan10:30 pm
Shani enters Makara
30 Jan1:13 am
Shani rises again (asta ends)†
30 Jan3:23 pm
Budha enters Kumbha
31 Jan2:46 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
February 2020
2 Feb2:48 pm
Shukra enters Meena
7 Feb4:22 pm
Mangala enters Dhanu
13 Feb3:34 am
Surya enters Kumbha
16 Feb6:53 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 18°46′ Kumbha
19 Feb7:11 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 2 Mar†
28 Feb2:03 pm
Shukra enters Mesha
March 2020
2 Mar8:16 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
9 Mar10:49 pm
Budha turns direct at 4°05′ Kumbha
14 Mar1:24 am
Surya enters Meena
22 Mar4:11 am
Mangala enters Makara
28 Mar5:09 am
Shukra enters Vrishabha
29 Mar5:34 pm
Guru enters Makara
April 2020
7 Apr3:54 am
Budha enters Meena
13 Apr9:54 am
Surya enters Mesha
21 Apr10:38 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 16 May†
24 Apr4:05 pm
Budha enters Mesha
May 2020
4 May10:12 am
Mangala enters Kumbha
8 May11:17 pm
Budha enters Vrishabha
10 May10:35 pm
Shani turns retrograde at 7°49′ Makara
13 May1:43 am
Shukra turns retrograde at 27°42′ Vrishabha
14 May6:47 am
Surya enters Vrishabha
14 May9:14 am
Guru turns retrograde at 3°06′ Makara
16 May11:10 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
24 May1:24 pm
Budha enters Mithuna
29 May10:25 am
Shukra becomes combust (asta) until 8 Jun†
June 2020
8 Jun3:07 pm
Shukra rises again (asta ends)†
14 Jun1:25 pm
Surya enters Mithuna
17 Jun11:58 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 20°38′ Mithuna
18 Jun9:46 am
Mangala enters Meena
22 Jun5:44 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 9 Jul†
25 Jun1:49 am
Shukra turns direct at 11°12′ Vrishabha
29 Jun6:43 pm
Guru enters Dhanu (moving backward)
July 2020
9 Jul9:01 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
12 Jul3:27 am
Budha turns direct at 11°21′ Mithuna
16 Jul12:17 am
Surya enters Karka
31 Jul6:41 pm
Shukra enters Mithuna
August 2020
1 Aug5:03 pm
Budha enters Karka
4 Aug1:07 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 2 Sep†
16 Aug8:00 am
Mangala enters Mesha
16 Aug8:41 am
Surya enters Simha
16 Aug9:58 pm
Budha enters Simha
31 Aug3:34 pm
Shukra enters Karka
September 2020
2 Sep1:32 am
Budha enters Kanya
2 Sep5:14 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
9 Sep5:18 pm
Mangala turns retrograde at 4°00′ Mesha
12 Sep7:57 pm
Guru turns direct at 23°16′ Dhanu
16 Sep8:38 am
Surya enters Kanya
22 Sep6:23 am
Budha enters Tula
23 Sep2:01 am
Rahu enters Vrishabha (moving backward)
23 Sep2:01 am
Ketu enters Vrishchika (moving backward)
27 Sep2:33 pm
Shukra enters Simha
29 Sep12:44 am
Shani turns direct at 1°11′ Makara
October 2020
3 Oct11:33 pm
Mangala enters Meena (moving backward)
13 Oct8:04 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 17°32′ Tula
16 Oct8:37 pm
Surya enters Tula
19 Oct9:36 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 31 Oct†
23 Oct12:16 am
Shukra enters Kanya
31 Oct12:46 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
November 2020
3 Nov11:50 am
Budha turns direct at 1°45′ Tula
13 Nov6:39 pm
Mangala turns direct at 21°05′ Meena
15 Nov7:25 pm
Surya enters Vrishchika
16 Nov1:33 pm
Shukra enters Tula
20 Nov2:00 am
Guru enters Makara
24 Nov7:20 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 12 Jan†
27 Nov7:35 pm
Budha enters Vrishchika
December 2020
10 Dec5:48 pm
Shukra enters Vrishchika
15 Dec10:03 am
Surya enters Dhanu
17 Dec12:08 am
Budha enters Dhanu
23 Dec10:51 pm
Mangala enters Mesha
† 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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