Gemini is the third astrological sign in the zodiac, originating from the constellation of Gemini.
The constellation is located in the northern celestial hemisphere. It was one of the 48 constellations described by the 2nd century AD astronomer Ptolemy, and it remains one of the 88 modern constellations today.
Gemini is represented by the twins, Castor and Pollux, known as the Dioscuri in Greek mythology.
In Babylonian astronomy, the stars Pollux and Castor were known as the Great Twins. Their names were Lugal-irra and Meslamta-ea, meaning “The Mighty King” and “The One who has arisen from the Underworld”. Both
names are titles of Nergal, a major Babylonian god of plague and pestilence, who was king of the underworld.
In Greek mythology, Gemini is associated with the myth of Castor and Pollux. Pollux was the son of Zeus, who seduced Leda, while Castor was the son of Tyndareus, the king of Sparta and Leda’s husband. When Castor died,
because he was a mortal, Pollux begged his father Zeus to give Castor immortality, which was done through uniting them together in the heavens.
In addition to their identification as Castor and Pollux, the twins have also been related to other celebrated pairs, such as the younger and older Horus or Romulus and Remus.
Geminis are the star sign born between May 22 and June 22, and belong to the Air element of the zodiac (along with Libra and Aquarius).
They are volatile beings that are inquisitive, intelligent, and great thinkers. They tend to remain in one location. They are highly competent who can quickly persuade others to accept their own thoughts and beliefs. The Geminins’ reluctance to commit to one subject or one individual, on the other hand, might give them the impression of crassness and a propensity to glide over essential aspects in life.
The Gemini personality is a lot of fun, but it does have flaws, just like any other sign. Geminis are flexible, extroverted, and clever, and there’s never a boring moment while they’re around. Their flaws include indecisiveness, impulsivity, unreliability, and nosiness, therefore don’t disclose a Gemini your innermost deepest fears.
The symbol of the Gemini Zodiac Sign is ♊︎.
Gemini is a positive, mutable sign. It is associated with the Yang polarity (masculine) in the Yin Yang ancient Chinese concept.
Under the tropical zodiac, the sun transits this sign between about May 21 to June 21. Under the sidereal zodiac, the sun transits this sign from about June 16 to July 16.
Gemini constellation contains 85 stars of naked eye visibility.
The brightest star in Gemini is Pollux, and the second-brightest is Castor. Castor’s Bayer designation as “Alpha” arose because Johann Bayer did not carefully distinguish which of the two was the brighter when he assigned his eponymous designations in 1603. Although the characters of myth are twins, the actual stars are physically very different from each other.
In classical antiquity, Cancer was the location of the Sun on the first day of summer (June 21). During the first century AD, axial precession shifted it into Gemini. In 1990, the location of the Sun on the first day of summer moved from Gemini into Taurus, where it will remain until the 27th century AD and then move into Aries. The Sun will move through Gemini from June 21 to July 20 through 2062.
Gemini is prominent in the winter skies of the northern Hemisphere and is visible the entire night in December–January.
In Meteorologica, Aristotle mentions that he observed Jupiter in conjunction with and then occulting a star in Gemini. This is the earliest-known observation of this nature. A study published in 1990 suggests the star involved was 1 Geminorum and the event took place on 5 December 337 BC.
The Geminids is a bright meteor shower that peaks on December 13–14. It has a maximum rate of approximately 100 meteors per hour, making it one of the richest meteor showers. The Epsilon Geminids peak between October
18 and October 29 and have only been recently confirmed. They overlap with the Orionids, which make the Epsilon Geminids difficult to detect visually. Epsilon Geminid meteors have a higher velocity than Orionids.
When William Herschel discovered Uranus on 13 March 1781 it was located near η Gem. In 1930 Clyde Tombaugh exposed a series of photographic plates centred on δ Gem and discovered Pluto.
In Chinese astronomy, the stars that correspond to Gemini are located in two areas: the White Tiger of the
West and the Vermillion Bird of the South.
NASA named its two-person space capsule Project Gemini after the zodiac sign because the spacecraft could
carry two astronauts.