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What Are Transits, and Why Can One Aspect Last for Days?
Transits compare the current sky with your birth chart. Learn about orb, applying, exact, and separating phases so you can read daily transits in context.
Try it with my birth details Explore my next 30 days of transits →A transit is the current sky meeting your birth chart
Your birth chart stays fixed at the moment you were born, while the transiting chart keeps moving. When a current planet forms a conjunction, sextile, square, trine, or opposition to a natal planet, it creates a transit you can follow over time.
A transit is not a promise that one specific event must happen. It describes a category of experience that may become louder, gain momentum, or require adjustment during a certain period.
Applying, exact, and separating
An aspect is applying while the angle between two planets moves closer to the target angle. It reaches exactness when the difference is smallest, then begins separating as the gap grows again.
The influence is not limited to the exact minute. The orb determines how far from exact an aspect is included, and the planets' speed determines whether the full transit lasts a few hours, several days, or much longer.
Start with slower planets, then add the faster ones
The Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Mars move relatively quickly and often describe short-term emotional, communication, and action rhythms. Jupiter through Pluto move more slowly and are more likely to correspond with longer themes of growth, responsibility, or change.
When reading a timeline, begin with tight aspects involving the Sun, Moon, Ascendant, or a slow-moving planet. Then compare the symbolism with what is actually happening in your life.