Panchang · Gochar
Gochar 2024: when each graha changes sign
In 2024, Guru moves into Vrishabha on 1 May. Below is every sign change, station and asta period of the nine grahas.
Times in Suva (Pacific/Fiji, UTC+12).
The grahas on 1 January 2024
Sidereal (Lahiri) sign, and from when to when. Open a graha for its whole year.
- Surya (Sun)In Dhanusince 16 Dec 2023, until 15 Jan 2024
- Chandra (Moon)In Simhasince 31 Dec 2023, until 3 Jan 2024
- Mangala (Mars)In Dhanusince 28 Dec 2023, until 6 Feb 2024
- Budha (Mercury)RetrogradeIn Vrishchikasince 28 Dec 2023, until 8 Jan 2024
- Guru (Jupiter)In Meshasince 22 Apr 2023, until 1 May 2024
- Shukra (Venus)In Vrishchikasince 25 Dec 2023, until 19 Jan 2024
- Shani (Saturn)In Kumbhasince 18 Jan 2023, until 30 Mar 2025
- RahuIn Meenasince 31 Oct 2023, until 19 May 2025
- KetuIn Kanyasince 31 Oct 2023, until 19 May 2025
Gochar calendar for 2024
Times in Suva (Pacific/Fiji, UTC+12). 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 2024
2 Jan3:07 pm
Budha turns direct at 27°59′ Vrishchika
8 Jan3:40 am
Budha enters Dhanu
15 Jan9:09 am
Surya enters Makara
17 Jan4:37 am
Mangala rises again (asta ends)†
19 Jan3:23 am
Shukra enters Dhanu
February 2024
1 Feb8:50 pm
Budha enters Makara
6 Feb4:07 am
Mangala enters Makara
9 Feb3:58 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 15 Mar†
12 Feb11:19 am
Shukra enters Makara
12 Feb11:27 am
Shani becomes combust (asta) until 17 Mar†
13 Feb10:09 pm
Surya enters Kumbha
20 Feb12:29 pm
Budha enters Kumbha
March 2024
7 Mar4:03 pm
Budha enters Meena
7 Mar5:13 pm
Shukra enters Kumbha
14 Mar7:02 pm
Surya enters Meena
15 Mar7:47 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
16 Mar12:33 am
Mangala enters Kumbha
17 Mar11:03 am
Shani rises again (asta ends)†
26 Mar9:22 am
Budha enters Mesha
31 Mar11:13 pm
Shukra enters Meena
April 2024
2 Apr10:14 am
Budha turns retrograde at 3°02′ Mesha
4 Apr5:04 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 19 Apr†
10 Apr4:16 am
Budha enters Meena (moving backward)
14 Apr3:30 am
Surya enters Mesha
19 Apr4:51 pm
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
23 Apr3:04 pm
Mangala enters Meena
25 Apr6:25 am
Shukra enters Mesha
26 Apr12:54 am
Budha turns direct at 21°47′ Meena
28 Apr2:06 pm
Shukra becomes combust (asta) until 11 Jul†
May 2024
1 May7:14 pm
Guru enters Vrishabha
4 May5:29 am
Guru becomes combust (asta) until 3 Jun†
11 May1:18 am
Budha enters Mesha
15 May12:19 am
Surya enters Vrishabha
19 May3:10 pm
Shukra enters Vrishabha
31 May6:43 pm
Budha enters Vrishabha
June 2024
1 Jun10:01 pm
Mangala enters Mesha
3 Jun12:49 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 27 Jun†
3 Jun10:49 am
Guru rises again (asta ends)†
13 Jun12:56 am
Shukra enters Mithuna
15 Jun5:33 am
Budha enters Mithuna
15 Jun6:52 am
Surya enters Mithuna
27 Jun10:57 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
29 Jun6:51 pm
Budha enters Karka
30 Jun6:33 am
Shani turns retrograde at 25°14′ Kumbha
July 2024
7 Jul10:57 am
Shukra enters Karka
11 Jul3:01 pm
Shukra rises again (asta ends)†
13 Jul1:21 am
Mangala enters Vrishabha
16 Jul5:43 pm
Surya enters Karka
20 Jul3:05 am
Budha enters Simha
31 Jul8:59 pm
Shukra enters Simha
August 2024
5 Aug4:55 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 9°55′ Simha
12 Aug4:24 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 27 Aug†
17 Aug2:08 am
Surya enters Simha
22 Aug1:14 pm
Budha enters Karka (moving backward)
25 Aug7:42 am
Shukra enters Kanya
26 Aug9:47 pm
Mangala enters Mithuna
27 Aug12:49 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
29 Aug9:14 am
Budha turns direct at 27°13′ Karka
September 2024
4 Sep6:05 pm
Budha enters Simha
14 Sep7:24 pm
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 23 Oct†
17 Sep2:07 am
Surya enters Kanya
18 Sep8:23 pm
Shukra enters Tula
23 Sep4:38 pm
Budha enters Kanya
October 2024
9 Oct6:48 pm
Guru turns retrograde at 27°08′ Vrishabha
10 Oct5:46 pm
Budha enters Tula
13 Oct12:26 pm
Shukra enters Vrishchika
17 Oct2:07 pm
Surya enters Tula
20 Oct8:41 pm
Mangala enters Karka
23 Oct1:33 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
30 Oct5:05 am
Budha enters Vrishchika
November 2024
7 Nov9:57 am
Shukra enters Dhanu
16 Nov2:51 am
Shani turns direct at 18°29′ Kumbha
16 Nov1:57 pm
Surya enters Vrishchika
26 Nov2:42 pm
Budha turns retrograde at 28°28′ Vrishchika
December 2024
1 Dec2:52 am
Budha becomes combust (asta) until 12 Dec†
2 Dec6:23 pm
Shukra enters Makara
7 Dec11:29 am
Mangala turns retrograde at 11°58′ Karka
12 Dec2:17 am
Budha rises again (asta ends)†
16 Dec4:35 am
Surya enters Dhanu
16 Dec8:56 am
Budha turns direct at 12°11′ Vrishchika
29 Dec6:05 am
Shukra enters Kumbha
† 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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