Astrology

Orb

Direct answer

Orb is the distance between an exact astrological aspect and the actual positions of the planets or points. A tighter orb usually means a stronger, clearer aspect.

Orb measures how close an aspect is to exact by degrees.

AstrologyThe Great Almanac DictionaryUpdated 2026-09-26

Get my personal reading

$0 today, then $12/month after 7 days. Cancel anytime.

At a glance

In astrology: Different traditions use different orbs.
Found in: Astrology
Related: Aspect Pattern, Birth Chart, Planetary Placement, Transit

An engraved chart wheel of twelve divisions, ruled aspect lines drawn across it — Chart geometry · visual guide **Orb**
Orb measures how close an aspect is to exact by degrees.
A structural orientation; exact placements depend on the chart or technique being discussed.

From the reference page to your own chart

What does your own chart say about you?

Choose love, work or purpose. Your reading is written from your chart. Your reading uses your own birth details.

Get my personal reading $0 today, then $12/month after 7 days. Cancel anytime.

Walk through Alex’s whole example first

The Road of AgesSee the turning points of your whole life, from your birth date See your road's shape

Prefer to explore first?

Member tools The 2026 book Lectures

The daily letter, free

One short letter at 7 each morning: the day’s theme read for your own chart.

The Road of AgesThe turning points of your whole life, from your own chart Walk my road

Free, by email

Your daily Almanac letter

One short letter at 7 each morning: the day’s theme read for your own chart, and one thing to do with it.

What sets Orb apart

An orb is the allowance in degrees on either side of an exact angle within which an aspect still counts. The old sources disagree sharply about how to set it: the Hellenistic writers used a few degrees each side, Abu Ma'shar gave each planet its own body from 7 degrees for Mercury to 15 for the Sun, and he judged two planets connected when they stood within half of each other's orbs. Ptolemy gives none at all.

Origin of the word: Latin orbis, circle
Abu Ma'shar, Sun: 15 degrees
Abu Ma'shar, Moon: 12 degrees
Abu Ma'shar, Mercury and Venus: 7 degrees each
Connection rule: within half of each planet's orb, per Abu Ma'shar
Modern habit: wider for conjunction and opposition, narrower for sextile

Often mistaken for something else: An exact aspect is a single moment when the angle is complete. The orb is the room on either side of that moment in which the aspect still counts.

A one-minute story

The Book of the Sky

How people learned to read the sky, from Babylon to the day you were born.

Orbs by author

No single orb is agreed, and the sources give three different kinds.

Equal orbs: the Hellenistic astrologers used about 3 degrees on each side, and al-Qabisi 6 degrees (Dykes).
Unequal "bodies" (Abu Ma'shar): the Sun 15 degrees, the Moon 12, Saturn 9, Jupiter 9, Mars 8, Venus 7 and Mercury 7. Dykes notes that the Arabic word means body, mass or volume, not orb.
Ashmand's footnote to Ptolemy, from later authors: Saturn 10, Jupiter 12, Mars 7.5, the Sun 17, Venus 8, Mercury 7.5 and the Moon 12.5 degrees. Ptolemy himself gives no orbs.

Abu Ma'shar's rule for connection is that two planets connect when they are within half of each other's orbs, and the effect is stronger when each stands inside the other's body or when they are in one bound.

How the old books used the orb

In Abu Ma'shar's usage a planet's orb is its body: the space in front of and behind it through which its power reaches.

The beginning of power: within 12 degrees in the Greek introduction Dykes cites, within 3 degrees as corporal in Bonatti, within 6 degrees in al-Qabisi.
The lighter planet applies to the heavier: the connection is counted from the lighter planet's side (Abu Ma'shar).

For the aspect between a planet and the Sun, the orb is the beam limit of about 15 degrees. See Under the Beams.

The story behind Orb

Orb rules developed as astrologers refined how close aspects must be to count meaningfully.

The spiritual meaning of Orb

Spiritually, Orb teaches proportion: not every symbolic contact deserves equal weight.

Orb in astrology

Different traditions use different orbs. Luminaries often receive wider orbs than minor bodies, and a one-degree aspect is usually interpreted more strongly than an eight-degree one.

Why Orb matters

Orb matters because it prevents every planet from being connected to every other planet. It gives a reading proportion: exact contacts matter more than loose background links.

Orb in practice: an example

Venus square Mars at 1 degree orb is generally stronger than Venus square Mars at 7 degrees orb.

Where readings of Orb go wrong

A common error is to use the same orb for every planet, point, and technique without explaining the method.

Read in the journal

How Long Does a Transit Last, and When Is It Exact

Sources and editorial method

This entry summarizes the tradition in the Almanac's own words; where no source is listed, it is an editorial summary rather than a primary text, and symbolic readings are named as the tradition's, not as fact.

Source: The Great Almanac Dictionary
Category: Astrology
Aliases: aspect orb
Last updated: 2026-09-26

See your strongest aspects

Orb in a book is one thing; Orb in your own birth chart is your life. The Oracle casts your real chart and tells you what it means for your love, your work, and your year ahead, in conversation. It opens with the 7-day Seeker trial.

Speak with the Oracle

How Orb lives in your own chart across your year, in love, in work, in timing, is written in the Cosmic Codex: the whole year, once. Open the Cosmic Codex

Aspect PatternAspect Pattern is a multi-planet geometry such as a T-Square, Grand Trine, Yod, or Kite. Birth ChartA Birth Chart is a personal astrology map built from birth date, time, and place. Planetary PlacementPlanetary Placement is a planet's location and condition inside an astrology chart. TransitTransit means current planetary movement activating a chart.

More in Astrology