How to use it
- Enter your Date and Time of birth and the Place you were born in. If you do not know the time, tick I do not know the time; the Sun is then taken at 12:00 local time.
- Type the Year of the return you want.
- Leave Cast the chart for my birth place ticked, or untick it and enter the place where you will be on the day of the return.
- Click Calculate and read the moment of the return, then the chart and the houses for that moment.
How the exact moment is found
The Sun moves about one degree a day, so it returns to its birth longitude within a day or two of the birth anniversary, a little earlier or later each year. The calculator looks at the three days either side of the expected date and finds the moment the Sun's longitude equals the birth longitude, by bisection, to the second.
The Sun's position comes from astronomy-engine. The return chart is then cast like any other chart: the same positions, houses and aspects, at the same moment, for the place you choose.
The place of the return
The moment of the solar return is the same wherever you are, because the Sun is the same in the sky. The place changes the houses and the Ascendant, and it changes the local time shown. Use the place where you expect to be on that day, or your birth place.
- The moment is shown in the time zone of the chosen place, with its UTC offset, and in UTC.
- Where the birth time is not known, 12:00 local time is used for the Sun, so the moment can be off by up to about half a day.
What the solar return is not
The solar return is a symbolic tradition for the year ahead. It is not a forecast, and nothing in the calculation has been shown by science to affect what happens. The positions are accurate astronomy; the reading is up to you.
Worked example: born New York, 4 July 1990, 14:30; return in 2026
The Sun was at 12°31′ Cancer at birth. In 2026 it returns to that longitude on 4 July at 07:27 New York time (daylight time, UTC-4), which is 11:27 UTC.
Cast for New York at that moment, the Ascendant of the return chart is 5°16′ Leo, and the Sun is at 12°31′ Cancer again, as it was at birth.
Frequently asked questions
When does the solar return happen?
Once a year, when the Sun comes back to its birth longitude. It falls within a day or two of your birthday, and the exact moment changes a little from year to year, so the calculator finds it each time.
Which place should I use for the return chart?
The place where you expect to be at that moment is the most useful, because the houses and the Ascendant depend on it. If you are not sure, use your birth place.
Why does the return moment differ from my birthday?
The tropical year is not exactly 365 days, and the Sun's longitude runs about 365.24 days a year. The return can come a few hours before or after midnight on your birthday, so it may fall on the day before or after.
Can I calculate a solar return for a past year?
Yes, for any year from 1800 to 2200. The calculation is the same, and the place you choose for that year is used for its chart.
Does this calculator store my details?
No. The birth date, time, places and the year stay in your browser and are not stored or sent to us.
Sources
- astronomy-engine, the MIT-licensed library that calculates the Sun's position
- JPL Horizons, the NASA ephemeris used to check the positions
- IANA Time Zone Database, the historical clock rules of each zone
- GeoNames, city coordinates and time zones (CC BY 4.0)
Figures and text last checked on Tuesday, November 10, 2026.