Two grids on one Moon longitude
The Moon’s apparent geocentric position is measured along the ecliptic. Subtract an ayanamsa to place it in a selected sidereal zodiac. Twelve equal rāśis each occupy 30°; twenty-seven equal nakshatras each occupy 13°20′. The Positional Astronomy Centre defines the nakshatra from the Moon’s nirayana longitude. Its national Rashtriya Panchang lists Moon ingress into both rāśis and nakshatras. A name represents an angular sector in this table, not a measured constellation outline.
Read the beginning before the first row
Suppose a selected month starts at 00:00 local while the Moon is already in Rohini. The calendar’s opening line reports Rohini. The first nakshatra row might be the later entry into Mrigashira. It does not mean Rohini started at midnight; its earlier entry lies outside the selected month. The same rule applies to the rashi table. A transition exactly at the next month’s local midnight belongs to that next month, preventing duplicate rows when months are read in sequence.
One event, two clocks
A UTC entry at 2026-09-20 23:30 is 2026-09-21 05:00 with a fixed UTC+05:30 offset, but 2026-09-20 16:30 with UTC−07:00. Both labels refer to the same instant. The calculator defines its selected month by local midnight at the entered fixed offset, then converts that interval to UTC before searching. This is why two offsets can produce a different first or last row even though the Moon motion has not changed.
A fixed offset is a user-supplied number, not a historical zone database. It will not automatically change for daylight saving, and the calendar does not infer an offset from a city name. If a clock change occurs during the month, read the UTC column and convert the relevant entry under the zone’s actual rule.
Calculation and precision
The browser uses Astronomy Engine 2.1.19 for the apparent geocentric Moon vector and true ecliptic longitude of date. It subtracts this site’s approximate Lahiri ayanamsa, with a J2000 reference value, precession polynomial, and nutation term. Every three hours it tests whether the Moon entered the next 30° rashi or 13°20′ nakshatra sector. Each detected crossing is narrowed to a 30-second bracket and shown to the minute. Both event series use the same modeled Moon positions.
This calendar does not run the Swiss Ephemeris. A different ayanamsa, coordinate choice, or ephemeris can shift a close boundary by minutes and sometimes to a different local date. The displayed minute is an approximate calculated entry, not an officially published panchanga time.
Transit time is not a sunrise assignment
A transit timestamp is one global geocentric event. A traditional daily panchanga may assign a nakshatra according to its state at local sunrise and also print its ending time. The daily panchanga calculator adds that local solar context; this month list does not. Likewise a birth nakshatra requires the birth instant, which the Janma Nakshatra lookup treats separately.
Compare with published calendars
Drik Panchang’s Moon nakshatra transit list and Moon rashi transit list show the same useful year and location navigation pattern. Compare a published line only after matching its city, local time zone, 27 versus 28 nakshatra setting, ayanamsa, and whether the row is an entry or an ending time. A disagreement near a boundary should prompt a settings check before an interpretive conclusion.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Moon transit the same as my birth Moon sign?
No. This calendar follows the Moon across 2026 or 2027. Your Janma Rashi and Janma Nakshatra are positions at a specific birth instant.
Why does the nakshatra table have more rows?
Each nakshatra spans 13°20′, while a rashi spans 30°. The moving Moon therefore crosses nakshatra boundaries more often.
Does my latitude change these entry times?
No latitude is used for the geocentric ecliptic positions here. Location matters when converting UTC to a civil clock and when asking which nakshatra is present at a local sunrise. A topocentric Moon model would be a different calculation and is not offered on this page.