As we will see, the Moon and planets also travel through the zodiac, though not on precisely the same paths. The particular path through these constellations followed by the Sun is known as the “ecliptic.” Once the zodiac was understood, it was easy to locate the Sun in the background of stars. Just notice what constellation of the zodiac is highest in the sky at midnight; the Sun is in the constellation of the zodiac that is directly opposite. Thales is supposed to have given 365 days as the time it takes for the Sun to make one complete circuit of the zodiac.
