River Phoenix’s birth chart
Born 23 August 1970, in Madras, Oregon. StarMap has no verified birth time yet.
Sun in Leo or Virgo · Moon in Taurus or Gemini
River Phoenix’s zodiac sign and chart, in brief
River Phoenix was born in Madras, Oregon, on 23 August 1970, a Sunday. The Sun moved from Leo into Virgo at about 06:35 local time that day, so the zodiac sign depends on the birth time: Leo for a birth before then, Virgo after. The Moon changed sign at about 13:05, from Taurus to Gemini; which of the two is the Moon sign depends on the hour of birth. River died on 31 October 1993, aged 23. StarMap has not verified a birth time yet, so the chart is cast for midday on that date and has no houses.
Earth carries the most weight: three of the eight planets whose sign does not depend on the birth time, against air two, water two and fire one. By modality the count is four fixed, two cardinal and two mutable. No two planets sit closer to an exact angle than Mercury and Pluto: a conjunction, about 0.1° from exact at midday. Aspects to the Moon are not counted, because the Moon moves about thirteen degrees in a day. Every planet was moving direct. The Moon was at its last quarter.
StarMap's dataset holds 18 other people born on 23 August, among them Kobe Bryant, Gene Kelly and Giuseppe Meazza.
See the sky the day River was born: the stars over Madras, Oregon, drawn as a star map with the date and the place beneath.
River Phoenix’s Sun, Moon and rising sign
Sun sign
Leo or Virgo
Leo until about 06:35, then Virgo (local time). Which one depends on a birth time StarMap does not have.
Born before about 06:35: Sun in Leo
A Leo Sun shines. For River Phoenix that suggests warmth, generosity and a need to be seen for who they really are, running through much of what they do. This placement grows by learning that the light is not diminished when it is shared.
Born after about 06:35: Sun in Virgo
A Virgo Sun refines. River is likely to notice what could be better and quietly make it so, keeping the highest standards for themselves. The art of this placement is knowing when good enough is the wiser choice.
Moon sign
Taurus or Gemini
Taurus until about 13:05, then Gemini (local time). Which one depends on a birth time StarMap does not have.
Born before about 13:05: Moon in Taurus
A Taurus Moon feels through the body and its surroundings. On this reading, good food, familiar places and slow evenings are what restore River, and sudden change lands hard. Once they feel safe, they can be the steadiest person in the room.
Born after about 13:05: Moon in Gemini
The Moon in Gemini processes feeling by naming it. For River, talking, writing and switching perspective are likely ways to settle, and silence can make small worries loud. They probably need people who let them think out loud.
Rising sign
The rising sign changes about every two hours, so it cannot be known without a birth time. The table below shows which sign was rising over Madras, Oregon, at each hour of the day.
River Phoenix’s rising sign, by birth time
StarMap has not verified a birth time for River yet. It shows a birth time only when Astro-Databank rates it AA, A or B on the Rodden scale (AA from a birth certificate or record, A from the person, someone close to them or a news report, B from a biography). Until then, this is the rising sign for every possible time of birth on 23 August 1970, computed for Madras, Oregon.
| Born around (local time) | Rising sign |
|---|---|
| 00:00 to 01:20 | Gemini rising |
| 01:20 to 03:45 | Cancer rising |
| 03:45 to 06:20 | Leo rising |
| 06:20 to 09:00 | Virgo rising |
| 09:00 to 11:35 | Libra rising |
| 11:35 to 14:15 | Scorpio rising |
| 14:15 to 16:40 | Sagittarius rising |
| 16:40 to 18:30 | Capricorn rising |
| 18:30 to 19:50 | Aquarius rising |
| 19:50 to 20:55 | Pisces rising |
| 20:55 to 22:00 | Aries rising |
| 22:00 to 23:25 | Taurus rising |
| 23:25 to 24:00 | Gemini rising |
Times are rounded to five minutes. Close to a boundary, a few minutes either way change the answer.
The chart wheel
Drawn for midday on 23 August 1970, with only the aspects that held all day. The Moon may stand up to eight degrees either side of where it is drawn. The Sun is drawn at its midday place; it moved from Leo into Virgo at about 06:35, so its sign depends on the birth time. How to read a chart wheel
Placements
| Sun | Leo until about 06:35, then Virgo |
|---|---|
| Moon | Taurus until about 13:05, then Gemini |
| Mercury | 26° Virgo 08' |
| Venus | 16° Libra 07' |
| Mars | 23° Leo 22' |
| Jupiter | 1° Scorpio 10' |
| Saturn | 22° Taurus 29' |
| Uranus | 6° Libra 47' |
| Neptune | 28° Scorpio 10' |
| Pluto | 26° Virgo 12' |
| North Node | 2° Pisces 49' |
| South Node | 2° Virgo 49' |
Positions at midday, local time. Without a birth time there are no houses.
River Phoenix’s planets, sign by sign
Each planet by sign: what the placement is traditionally taken to mean, not a claim about River Phoenix’s private life.
Sun in Leo or Virgo
Leo until about 06:35, then Virgo
purpose and vitality
Born before about 06:35: Sun in Leo
Purpose for River Phoenix is probably tied to creating and being seen doing it, and a Leo Sun's vitality rises the moment there is an audience, even an audience of one. The tension is losing steam when no one is watching. The giveaway is often the extra effort that goes into something the moment someone notices them making it.
Born after about 06:35: Sun in Virgo
A Virgo Sun finds purpose in being useful and doing a job properly, and River's energy tends to stay steady as long as there is a task worth doing well. Rest is the hard part, because it can feel undeserved until everything is fixed. Typically a piece of work is still being adjusted long after everyone else would call it finished.
Moon in Taurus or Gemini
Taurus until about 13:05, then Gemini
needs and habits
Born before about 13:05: Moon in Taurus
A Taurus Moon needs routine, familiar food and physical comfort to feel steady from day to day. A sudden change of schedule probably unsettles River more than they let on. A good bed, a favourite mug or the same coffee order can turn an unsteady morning around.
Born after about 13:05: Moon in Gemini
The Moon in Gemini runs its daily habits on conversation and mental stimulation, and River is likely to settle by talking a worry through rather than sitting with it quietly. A day with no one to talk to can leave them restless. The habit is to message a friend the moment something comes to mind, before deciding what to think about it.
For River, Mercury in Virgo points to thinking that is precise and attentive to detail, and to clear communication, because the facts have usually been checked first. The catch is fixating on a small error and losing sight of the larger point. This is the placement that edits a message three times before sending something everyone else would have sent in one go.
Venus in Libra loves with an instinct for balance and partnership, and River probably values harmony, fairness and someone who makes an effort to look good together. The risk with this Venus is staying in a relationship for the sake of the pairing itself. River may give up a personal preference before anyone has even asked.
Mars in Leo acts with confidence and wants the effort to be visible, and for River its anger is likely to flare when pride or loyalty is challenged. The tension is turning a disagreement into a matter of ego. Criticism of the work can feel personal to a Leo Mars, even when it was not meant that way.
Jupiter in Scorpio
1° Scorpio 10' at midday
growth and excess
Jupiter in Scorpio grows by facing what is difficult rather than avoiding it, even when that is the harder road at the time. The overreach, for River, may be an intensity that turns a manageable situation into an all-consuming one. The resilience tends to be noticed only after the hard part is over.
Saturn in Taurus gathers its discipline around security and the things a person relies on, and River is likely to take very little for granted. The doubt is a fear that stability could disappear, even when it clearly has not. This placement likes to know what things cost before committing, and tends to stay careful even in steady times.
Uranus in Libra
6° Libra 47' at midday
freedom, generational
River holds Uranus in Libra in common with many people born in the same stretch of years. Together that generation reshapes ideas of partnership, fairness and how relationships are arranged. Its personal side is a readiness to question traditional roles more openly than earlier generations felt able to.
Neptune in Scorpio
28° Scorpio 10' at midday
imagination, generational
Neptune in Scorpio marks a long season that River shares with many people of a similar age. Its imagination is drawn to the hidden, the taboo and the transformative, with a wider cultural fascination for secrets and endings. In an individual that can be a pull towards mystery for its own sake.
Pluto in Virgo
26° Virgo 12' at midday
power, generational
Pluto in Virgo is shared by River and many people born in the same span of years. That generation lives through deep change in work, in how services are organised, and in daily life itself. In one person that can be intensity around control, order and how much any one system can carry.
Aspects in River Phoenix’s chart
How the planets stand to each other, tightest first. Without a birth time the orbs are those at midday, and aspects to the Moon are left out because the Moon moves about thirteen degrees in a day.
Mercury conjunction Pluto
about 0.1° at midday
River Phoenix's thinking is likely to be probing and intense, drawn to what lies underneath a surface explanation. With Mercury conjunct Pluto, getting to the bottom of things comes naturally, and the caution is not to assume a hidden motive where an ordinary one will do.
Mars square Saturn
about 0.9° at midday
River's drive can meet resistance, from outside obstacles or from private doubt, and frustration builds when progress feels blocked. Under this square, every stretch of steady work done anyway turns that resistance into competence, the kind that is there when it is needed most.
Sun sextile Jupiter
about 0.9° at midday
Optimism is part of who River is, and it tends to show them open doors, provided they are willing to walk through. With some deliberate effort behind it, the outlook of a Sun-Jupiter sextile becomes momentum that carries past the first burst of enthusiasm.
Mercury sextile Neptune
about 2.0° at midday
River's thinking and imagination cooperate gently, so creative and intuitive ideas are within easy reach. The inventiveness is soft and pleasant rather than analytical, useful for easing a difficult conversation without losing the point of it.
Sun square Neptune
about 2.1° at midday
A Sun-Neptune square can blur River's sense of who they are under the pull of an ideal, a cause or someone else's story, until it is unclear where they end and the dream begins. The task is staying inspired without losing their own outline.
Mercury trine Saturn
about 3.6° at midday
River's thinking has discipline behind it, which gives them a clear, methodical way of working through ideas. With Mercury trine Saturn, conclusions can be trusted because they have usually been tested already, often more thoroughly than anyone nearby realises.
The rest, listed without a reading. Those between Uranus, Neptune and Pluto hold for years at a time, so everyone born while one holds shares it.
- Neptune sextile Plutoabout 2.0°
- Saturn trine Plutoabout 3.7°
- Mars square Neptuneabout 4.8°
- Saturn opposition Neptuneabout 5.7°
- Sun conjunction Marsabout 6.8°
Also born on 23 August
How this page is made
Planet positions are computed with the astronomy-engine ephemeris and checked against Swiss Ephemeris. Birth dates and places come from Wikidata; birth times, where StarMap has one, come from Astro-Databank and are shown with their Rodden rating. The readings describe what a placement is traditionally taken to mean. They are written by StarMap for reflection and entertainment, not as statements about the person’s private life. New to charts? How to read a birth chart.
Birth data: Wikidata. StarMap has not verified a birth time yet. Photo: Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on the file page).
StarMap is for entertainment and self-reflection. It does not predict health, money or legal outcomes.