# Orb

> An orb is how far from exact an aspect can be and still count. How orbs work and why a tighter one is read as a stronger aspect.

- Page: https://novaoracles.com/glossary/orb
- Language: en

An orb is how far from exact an aspect can be and still count. Exact angles are rare, so astrologers allow a margin: a conjunction or a square, for instance, is read within a few degrees of exact. The tighter the orb, a degree or two, the more strongly the aspect is felt; a wide orb works more faintly. Different astrologers use slightly different limits.

An orb is the wiggle room around an aspect. Two planets are rarely at a perfectly exact angle, so the orb sets how far from exact they can be and still be read as connected. It is the difference between an aspect that counts and one that does not.

## Exact angles, flexible tolerance

The aspects themselves are exact numbers: a [conjunction](https://novaoracles.com/glossary/conjunction) at 0 degrees, a sextile at 60, a square at 90, a trine at 120, an opposition at 180. Real planets almost never sit on those numbers to the degree. The angular gap between them is a fact you can measure, but how much slack to allow is a convention, not a law of the sky. That is why the size of an orb is a matter of tradition and taste rather than astronomy.

## Tight orbs, wide orbs and applying aspects

Tradition ties strength to tightness. An aspect within a degree or two is read as loud and unmistakable, while one near the edge of its orb is read as faint background. Astrologers usually grant wider orbs to the Sun and Moon and to the major [aspects](https://novaoracles.com/glossary/aspect), and narrower ones to minor aspects and smaller points. Many also separate an applying aspect, still closing toward exact, from a separating one that has already passed, and read the applying one as more potent. A few degrees of orb can therefore change a whole reading, deciding whether an aspect is counted as loud, faint, or not really there at all.

## A 96-degree gap: square or not?

Say the Sun sits at 10 degrees of Aries and Saturn at 16 degrees of Cancer. The gap is 96 degrees, six degrees off an exact [square](https://novaoracles.com/glossary/square). An astrologer working with an eight-degree orb counts it as a square and reads the tension. One who keeps a strict five-degree orb sets it aside as too wide to matter. Same chart, two verdicts, decided entirely by the orb each reader uses.

## Why there is no single correct orb

There is no single correct orb; different astrologers and traditions use different numbers, and that is normal. A wide aspect is weak, not absent, so it should be noted rather than ignored outright. And the orb is not the aspect itself; it is the tolerance you wrap around the exact angle.

## Orbs applied when aspects are drawn

The NovaOracles [birth chart tool](https://novaoracles.com/tools/birth-chart) applies sensible orbs when it draws your aspects, and the [compatibility guide](https://novaoracles.com/guides/compatibility) shows how orb choices shape the aspects found between two charts.

## FAQ

### What is an orb in astrology?

The margin of degrees around an exact aspect within which the aspect still counts. If two planets are close enough to an exact angle, they are in aspect; too far, and they are not.

### How many degrees is a normal orb?

It varies by astrologer. Many allow up to about eight degrees for a major aspect and more for the Sun and Moon, with tighter orbs for minor aspects and lesser points.

### What is an applying aspect?

One where the faster planet is still moving toward exact, closing the orb. Astrologers often read an applying aspect as stronger than a separating one that is opening up again.