In astrology, a horoscope is a chart or diagram representing the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, the astrological aspects, and sensitive angles at the time of an event, such as the moment of a person's birth. The word horoscope is derived from Greek words meaning "a look at the hours".
It is used as a method of divination regarding events relating to the point in time it represents and forms the basis of the horoscopic traditions of astrology. However, no studies have shown any scientific support for the accuracy of horoscopes, and the methods used to make interpretations are generally considered pseudo-scientific.
In common usage, horoscope often refers to an astrologer's interpretation, usually based on a system of Sun sign astrology; or on the calendar significance of an event, as in Chinese astrology. In particular, many newspapers and magazines carry predictive columns based on celestial influences in relation to the zodiacal placement of the Sun on the day of a person's birth, identifying the individual's Sun sign or "star sign" based on the tropical zodiac.
The zodiac, or "circle of animals" is a zone or belt in space projected onto the celestial sphere through which, from our viewpoint, the planets move. A symbolic geometric construction around 15 to 18 degrees wide, it is divided into 12 signs, each of 30 degrees longitude (making 360 degrees in all), with the ecliptic, the apparent path of the Sun, as its middle line.
