Creating and editing a chart

I know the name of the record in the database.

What changes

Helps to find a person or event; does not affect the coordinates of planets.

When to use it

Use distinguishing names, especially for one person’s events.

Sign of the record: not specified, male or female.

What changes

It is stored as a characteristic of the base; it does not move planets or cusps on its own.

When to use it

Select if required for your library or import; an unknown value can be left empty.

Determine the role of the record: person, event or other available database type.

What changes

Imported events may have a connection with a press for the condensation method. In this form, there is no separate choice of parent record; the type itself does not establish such a connection.

When to use it

Use the "Event" type for a separate recording of the event; for birth time rectification also check the imported attachment to the native.

Calendar date of birth or event, as in the source.

What changes

Together with time and time zone sets the calculation moment. Format DD.MM.RRRR; the impossible date the program will reject.

When to use it

For historical records, add a calendar after import.

Local clock time of the event, GG:XH or GG:XH:SS.

What changes

Changes moment, angles and houses; the UT program removes local time and corrections.

When to use it

Enter the time from the document. If it is approximate, record uncertainty in the research materials; do not perceive the conditional 12:00 as the exact time.

Search for a settlement in the built-in atlas.

What changes

It is the choice of the result that sets the coordinates and time zone; the text of the name entered without the selection does not guarantee their update.

When to use it

Select the right city according to the country. If there is no result, manually enter coordinates and belt.

North or south of the equator.

What changes

It affects the horizon, houses and local astronomical events. South can be set S or a negative number.

When to use it

Check the location after hand-input: for example 50.45 or 50°27′ N; boundaries −90...90°.

Eastern or western of the original meridian.

What changes

Affects the local meridian and houses. West — W or negative number.

When to use it

Example 30.52 or 30°31′ E; boundaries −180...180°. This is the geographical longitude, not the longitude of the planet in the zodiac.

Local time translation rules to UT for place and date, such as Europe/Kyiv.

What changes

The automatic mode uses historical data, including time transitions. The belt is not a permanent repair for all years.

When to use it

Select the event belt. Check the warnings for historical dates and clock shifts.

Disables the automatic selection of time correction and allows you to specify it yourself.

What changes

Enabled: The "Shift from GMT" field is used, and the time zone does not define the correction. Off: the historical database selects the correction.

When to use it

Leave off if there is no proven source of another correction. The manual value should already include the desired summer or other time.

Example

Local 12:00 and the shift +02:00 give 10:00 UT. Add two hours to the time entered before this is not necessary.

The manual difference between local time and UTC is +GG:X or −GG:X.

What changes

Changes UT and the entire calculation. Available after enabling manual shift.

When to use it

The change is to be specified on the date of the event. +02:00 means that the local time is two hours ahead of UTC.

Calculates the time shift by geographical longitude, as in local average solar time.

What changes

Completes manual correction. This is a different standard time than modern belt.

When to use it

Use only when the historical source gives a local average time; the current birth record usually does not require this.

Houses are the 12 sectors of a chart. In astrology, they represent topics such as identity, resources, relationships and work. The house system determines the boundaries of these sectors, called cusps. You choose it separately from the zodiac.

What changes

Changing the system moves the cusps. A planet’s house, house rulers and formulas involving cusps may change. Choosing a different house system does not itself move a planet through the zodiac. Asc and MC do not coincide with the first and tenth house cusps in every system.

When to use it

For beginners: keep Placidus for your first chart unless your textbook specifies another system. For practitioners: use the system required by your method and record it in your report. Select the same system when comparing programs.

Example

Suppose Asc is at 18° Taurus. In Equal houses, the first house starts at 18° Taurus; in Whole sign houses, it starts at 0° Taurus. A planet at 10° Taurus may be assigned to a different house even though its longitude has not changed.

Enlarge screenshot ⤢

At a latitude where the selected system cannot be calculated, Zorya Astro reports a fallback to Porphyry. Check the system actually used in the Houses tab. The Topocentric house system and the Topocentric positions setting control different calculations.

Swiss Ephemeris: Geometry of Houses Systems (§6.2) ↗

The zodiac is a scale of 12 equal signs of 30° used to express planetary positions. The tropical zodiac starts at the March equinox. The sidereal zodiac uses a different origin tied to a stellar reference; the ayanamsha specifies the offset. Sidereal signs are also equal in size; they are different from the unequal astronomical constellations.

What changes

The degrees, and often the signs, of planets and angles change, and dependent tables are recalculated. Because the offset is shared, the longitude difference between two planets does not itself change. In Whole sign houses, changing the zodiac can also change houses because they depend on the sign of Asc.

When to use it

Keep Tropical if you are studying a tropical method. Choose Sidereal for a sidereal school and to reproduce its examples. Professional reports should also name the ayanamsha.

Example

Illustrative example: the tropical Sun is at 10° Aries and the ayanamsha is 24°. Its sidereal position is 16° Pisces: 10° − 24° = −14°, or 346° around the circle. The birth date has not changed; the coordinate origin has.

Enlarge screenshot ⤢

Sidereal is not a “more accurate” setting. It is a choice of tradition and coordinates. The 24° value is illustrative: see Data for the actual ayanamsha on the chart date.

The angular offset between the tropical zodiac and a particular sidereal zodiac. Different schools define different origins, so “sidereal” alone is not enough to reproduce a chart.

What changes

Available after selecting Sidereal. Changing the ayanamsha recalculates sidereal longitudes. Near boundaries, the sign, nakshatra, varga and initial dasha balance may change.

When to use it

Start with Lahiri unless your teaching method requires another ayanamsha. When comparing with a colleague, check the ayanamsha, date and node mode. The Vedic and Periods screens have their own ayanamsha selectors; check those separately.

The field is disabled in Tropical mode. A greyed-out field is expected because this offset is not applied in that mode.

Swiss Ephemeris: sidereal modes and ayanamsha ↗

Geocentric calculation looks from the center of the Earth, topocentric — from the observation spot on its surface. The difference is due to parallax; it is especially noticeable for nearby Moon.

What changes

Enabled: the position is asked for the chart location. Off: standard geocentric. Change can affect the exact longitude and aspects. This is not the choice of topocentric system houses.

When to use it

Leave off for the usual geocentric natal chart. Turn on if your methodology or control calculation clearly uses topocentric coordinates; location coordinates should be correct.

Example

Compare Longitude Moon before and after switching, keeping the date and system houses unchanged. So you will see the effect of the observation point.

Tag for chart organization: for example “clients”, “learning”, “check time”.

What changes

The choice adds or removes a tag; confirm the new name in the field. Tags are available for chart selection and do not change the calculation.

When to use it

Create several stable categories instead of many different writing of the same tag.

Open the attached photo if the file is available.

What changes

Unavailable file is marked separately; the astronomical calculations are not affected by the photo.

When to use it

To check the materials of the archive; when transferring, check whether the photo has been imported.

Save checks the fields and saves the chart; canceling closes the unsaved form; deleting removes the existing record after confirmation.

What changes

This is action over the base, not just over the display. After saving, open "Data" to control UT and settings.

When to use it

Before removing the chart, make a backup copy.