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Neptune: The Farthest Planet and the Dreamer

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Neptune is 4.32 billion km (2.69 billion miles) from Earth. It is 3° along the ecliptic, in the sign of Aries, moving backward (retrograde). It moves into Taurus on .

Where Neptune is in space

  • 4.32 billion km(2.69 billion miles) from EarthIts light takes 4 h 0 min to reach us
  • 4.47 billion km(2.78 billion miles) from the SunSunlight takes 4 h 8 min to get there
  • 2.68° along the ecliptic 1.42° south of it Ecliptic longitude and latitude, from 0° at the March equinox
  • RA 0h 12m · Dec -0.2° right ascension and declinationThe sky coordinates a telescope uses

At 12:00 PM UTC today, as seen from Earth's center.

Where Neptune is in the zodiac

  • 2°41′ Ariestoday at 12:00 PM UTC 2°41′ into Aries's 30°
  • In Aries since
  • Moves into Taurus After 4498 days in Aries
  • Moving backward (retrograde) 0.03° a day along the ecliptic
  1. Pre-shadow beginsNow
  2. Retrograde beginsNow 4°25′ Aries
  3. Retrograde endsNow 1°37′ Aries
  4. Post-shadow endsComplete

All transits →

Neptune retrograde

Retrograde means Neptune appears to move backward along the ecliptic for a while. Nothing reverses: Earth moves faster on its smaller orbit, and as it overtakes Neptune, our changing angle makes Neptune seem to slide back against the stars, the way a slower car seems to move backward as you pass it. Neptune goes retrograde once a year, for about five months.

Retrograde in 2026

  • – Now From 4°25′ Aries back to 1°37′ Aries

What is Neptune?

Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun: an ice giant about 49,500 km across, almost four times Earth’s width, deep blue from methane, with the fastest winds measured in the solar system, over 2,000 km/h. It orbits the Sun at an average of 4.5 billion km (30.1 au) and goes around in 165 years, so sunlight takes about four hours to reach it. It was found in 1846 where Urbain Le Verrier had predicted it from its pull on Uranus.

Where Neptune is in the sky

The ecliptic is the path the Sun appears to follow across our sky over a year, the plane of Earth’s orbit seen from Earth. Positions along it are measured in degrees, from 0° at the March equinox to 360°. The zodiac divides it into twelve equal 30° parts named after signs: Aries covers 0° to 30°, Taurus 30° to 60°, and so on. The signs are counted from the equinox, not from the star patterns they were named after; those constellations now sit about 24° further along, because Earth’s axis slowly wobbles (precession).

Neptune moves along the ecliptic at up to about 0.04° a day and spends about 14 years in each sign, going around the zodiac in 165 years. It is too faint to see without a telescope.

Neptune in astrology

In astrology Neptune stands for dreams, imagination, intuition, compassion and spirituality, and also for illusion and confusion. It is the modern ruler of Pisces. Because it spends about 14 years in a sign, astrology reads its sign as a theme of a generation.

Neptune and your sign

Astrology also reads the twelve signs as twelve houses, each one an area of life, counted from your own sign: your sign is your 1st house, the next sign your 2nd, and so on around the zodiac. So Neptune, now in Aries, falls in a different house for every sign. For example, Aries is the 1st house for Aries, the house of self and fresh starts. Find your sign below, and read your daily horoscope for how the day plays out.

Frequently asked questions

How was Neptune discovered?
By math first: Urbain Le Verrier calculated where an unseen planet must be to explain Uranus's orbit, and Johann Galle found it there in 1846.
How long is Neptune in each sign?
About 14 years; it goes around the zodiac in about 165 years.
How often does Neptune go retrograde?
Every year, for about five months.
What does Neptune mean in astrology?
Dreams, imagination, intuition and compassion, and also illusion. It is the modern ruler of Pisces.