Where will the Sun be on a specific date?

Set the date picker to any future day and this tool returns the Sun’s sidereal rashi, nakshatra, pada, and exact degree at that day’s local sunrise, plus the next Sankranti moment. Positions are computed with Swiss Ephemeris DE431 and Lahiri Ayanamsha, so they match classical panchang publications.

Where was the Sun on a past date?

Set the date picker to any historical day. The Swiss Ephemeris DE431 dataset covers 13,201 BCE onward, so ancestral birth dates, historical Sankranti moments, and past festival timings all resolve exactly. The readout gives the Sun’s rashi, nakshatra, pada, and degree at local sunrise on that date.

What nakshatra is the Sun in on a given date?

Enter the date and the tool reports the nakshatra the Sun occupies at local sunrise, along with the pada. Because the Sun moves ~1° per day and a nakshatra spans 13°20′, it stays in one nakshatra for about 13.5 days — so most dates fall comfortably inside a single nakshatra rather than near a boundary.

Which rashi is the Sun in on a given date?

The readout shows the Surya Rashi (sidereal Sun sign) at local sunrise for the date you pick. The Sun stays in one rashi for about 30 days, so nearly every date has a single unambiguous answer. Note this is the Vedic sidereal sign, which is typically one sign behind the Western tropical sign.

What is the difference between this page and Find Dates?

This page answers “where will the Sun be on a date I already know?” — you supply the date, it returns the position. Find Sun Transit Dates answers the reverse: “when will the Sun be in a sign or nakshatra I already know?” — you supply the target, it returns every matching window in a date range up to 730 days wide.

Can I look up the Sun on my birthday?

Yes. Set the date field to your birth date and the tool computes the Sun at local sunrise for that day, returning the sidereal sign (Rashi), nakshatra, pada, degree, sign lord, and next Sankranti. If a Sankranti occurred during that day, both signs are listed.

How far back and forward can I look up the Sun?

The Swiss Ephemeris DE431 dataset covers 13,201 BCE through 17,191 CE. In practice this covers any historical or future date of interest. Lahiri Ayanamsha is applied consistently across the whole range.

How do I find a specific Sankranti (like Makara Sankranti)?

Set the date near mid-January (Makara Sankranti falls around January 14 in the modern era) and the tool will show the exact Sankranti moment if it happens on that day. For a full list of Sankranti dates in a year, use the Year Timeline. To search across a longer range for a specific sign, use Find Dates.

Why does Sun date-lookup use sunrise as the reference moment?

The Vedic day begins at sunrise, so classical panchang convention reports the Sun’s position at that instant. Sunrise varies by geography and season — the tool auto-detects your location so the anchor matches your local horizon. The Sun’s sidereal longitude at that instant is the same everywhere.

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Sun Date Lookup

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Where will the Sun be on a given date? Get its complete Vedic readout at local sunrise for any past or future day — verify natal Sun placement or find historical Sankranti timings.

📆 Any Date 🌞 Sunrise-based

← Sun Transit Hub

Select Date

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Note: All calculations use Lahiri Ayanamsa (sidereal) and Swiss Ephemeris for high precision. The Sun's longitude at a given UTC instant does not vary by geography, but the sunrise reference moment and the wall-clock labels for any within-day sign or nakshatra transition do — the tool auto-detects your location so the readout matches classical Vedic day-boundary conventions.

Also try:

Sun Transit Hub Live Tracker Find Nakshatra/Rashi Dates Surya Rashi Peyarchi 2026 Surya Nakshatra Peyarchi 2026

About Sun Date Lookup (Historical Surya Gochar)

Sun at any date — how it works

Pick any past or future date; the tool computes the Sun's sidereal position at local sunrise for that day, plus any Sankranti (sign change) or nakshatra change happening during the 24-hour window. Sunrise is the classical Vedic day boundary — a Sankranti before sunrise belongs to the previous day for religious purposes even if it happened after midnight.

Why check the Sun on a specific date?

Natal Sun verification — look up your birth date to confirm which Rashi and Nakshatra the Sun occupied when you were born. This is the natal Surya used in Vedic reading.
Sankranti timing — find the exact moment of any Sankranti in history for religious calendars, panchang verification, or planning solar rituals (Makara Sankranti, Mesha Sankranti, etc.).
Historical events — verify the Sun's position on any date — birthdays of ancestors, historical dates, past astrological readings. Swiss Ephemeris DE431 covers 13,201 BCE onward.
Solar year milestones — the ayana changes, Uttarayana and Dakshinayana, which in the Vedic reckoning begin at the sidereal Capricorn and Cancer ingresses (Makara and Karka Sankranti) rather than at the tropical solstices.

Sunrise-based reference — and Sankranti days

When the Sun changes sign at, say, 2:47 PM on a Tuesday, the sunrise-based readout for Tuesday will show the previous sign; Wednesday's sunrise will show the new sign. This is the classical Vedic convention and matches how Sankranti dates are recorded in panchang publications. The tool also lists any within-day Sankranti (~12 per year) so you never miss a boundary-day transition.

Common questions this page answers

This page answers one shape of question: you already know the date, and you want to know where the Sun was or will be on it. Typical phrasings:

Where will the Sun be on a future date? — set the date picker to any upcoming day and get the Sun’s rashi, nakshatra, and pada at that day’s local sunrise, plus the next Sankranti moment.
Where was the Sun on a past date? — check any historical day. Swiss Ephemeris DE431 covers 13,201 BCE onward, so ancestral dates and historical festival timings all resolve.
Which nakshatra was the Sun in when I was born? — enter your birth date to read the natal Surya nakshatra and pada used in Vedic chart reading.
What rashi is the Sun in on my birthday? — the sidereal Sun sign (Surya Rashi) at sunrise on that date. Note this is the Vedic sign, typically one behind the Western tropical sign you may know.
Did a Sankranti fall on that date? — if the Sun crossed a sign boundary during the 24-hour window, the exact Sankranti moment is listed. Useful for verifying Makara Sankranti, Mesha Sankranti, and other festival dates against panchang publications.
Which nakshatra is the Sun in today? — leave the date on today. For a live reading instead of the sunrise anchor, use the Live Tracker.

The reverse question — “when will the Sun next be in Leo / Krittika / Capricorn?” — is answered by the Find Sun Transit Dates tool, which searches any 730-day range for a target you pick.

Related tools

Live Tracker — the Sun's current sidereal longitude, sign (Rashi), Nakshatra, Pada, sign lord, and progress through the current sign. Auto-updates through the day.
Find Sun Transit Dates — reverse lookup. Pick a nakshatra or rashi and get every upcoming Sun window (Sankranti moment + exit) in the next 730 days. Ideal for tracking specific Sankrantis two years ahead.
Surya Rashi Peyarchi (Year Timeline) — also called Ravi Peyarchi. Every Sankranti (Sun sign entry) for a chosen year as a card — 12 Sankranti moments, shown as 13 cards because the Sagittarius visit straddles 1 January — with Peak Exaltation (Aries) and Peak Debilitation (Libra) windows called out. Use the arrows to view any past or future year, from 13,201 BCE onward.
Surya Nakshatra Peyarchi (Nakshatra Year Timeline) — every Sun Nakshatra visit for a chosen year as a card — 27 cards with pada-level entry / exit times. Sun-owned Nakshatras (Krittika, Uttara-Phalguni, Uttara-Ashadha) highlighted.