What Did the Sky Look Like the Night I Was Born?

Enter your birth date, time and city, and you can see it: the real sky above where you were born, including the Moon’s phase, the planets that were out and the constellations overhead.

Make your star map · Prefer to have it made for you? See it on Etsy

What you’ll see

The Moon. When it’s above the horizon and switched on, its phase for your chosen moment, from a thin crescent to a full Moon.
The planets. The Sun, Moon and planets above the horizon at that moment, placed where they really were.
The constellations. Lines and names, if you choose to show them.
The Milky Way. A soft band across the sky, if you switch it on.

What you need

Your birth date. Easy.
Your birth time. It may be on a birth certificate or in hospital records. Not sure? Leave it blank. The map uses noon, local clock time (daylight saving included for that place and year), and tells you so.
Your birth place. Start typing the city and pick it from the list.

If you leave the time blank, the map uses 12 noon in the selected place. Enter your recorded birth time to map that moment. If you choose an approximate time instead, the map represents that chosen time.

Why the place and time matter

The sky depends on where you stand and when. Two people born on the same day in different cities can have a different view: a different horizon, different stars up and a different time of night. That’s why the map asks for all three.

If you were born during the day, the stars were still there. They were just hidden by sunlight. The map draws stars as if the sky were dark, so a daytime birth shows the Sun among them.

Make it yours

Add a title, your name and a short line. A few ideas:

“The night I arrived”
“Born under this sky”
Your name and birth date
A line from a parent or a friend

You can save the image to keep it, or share it. Whatever you put on the map shows when you share it, so leave out the city or time if you’d rather. A birth sky also makes a thoughtful gift for a friend or a parent.

Curious about your Sun sign?

The map can show an optional zodiac layer. It adds sign labels and symbols so you can see which tropical sign the Sun was in on your birth date. The sign and the constellation behind the Sun can differ, so in the stars themselves the Sun may have been in a neighboring constellation. The layer describes where things were, and it’s just for fun. If you’d like to learn more, our Astrology 101 lessons explain the Big Three in plain English.

How the map is made

The map is drawn from astronomical calculations of the real sky for the date, time and place you give. The preview is computed in your browser, and nothing you enter into it is sent or stored. If you save or share an image, it includes the details you leave on it. If you order through Etsy, you submit your personalization there so the map can be made.

Questions people ask

What if I don’t know my birth time? Leave the time blank. The map uses noon, local clock time, and says so. Because the sky turns through the night, a different time will show a different view.

Can I see the sky for a date before I was born? Yes. The map works for any date between 1900 and 2100.

Does the map include the planets? Yes. The Sun, the Moon and the planets above the horizon are drawn where they were for your date, time and place.

What happens to my birth details? The preview runs in your browser, so nothing you type into it is sent or stored. If you order through Etsy, you submit your personalization there. If you save or share an image, it includes the details you leave on it.

Make yours

Add your birth details and see the sky you arrived under.

Make your star map · Prefer to have it made for you? See it on Etsy

You’ll add your names, date, time and place in the personalization box on Etsy.