Planet PositionsPlanet Positions API

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Planet Positions is a simple tool for getting the position of planets in the solar system. It returns the position of planets in the solar system.

The Planet Positions API provides reliable and fast access to planet positions data through a simple REST interface. Built for developers who need consistent, high-quality results with minimal setup time.

To use Planet Positions, you need an API key. You can get one by creating a free account and visiting your dashboard.

POST Endpoint

URL
https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions

Code Examples

Here are examples of how to call the Planet Positions API in different programming languages:

cURL Request
curl -X POST \
  "https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions" \
  -H "X-API-Key: your_api_key_here" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
  "planet": "Moon",
  "date": "2025-04-15 10:37:00",
  "lat": 37.7749,
  "lon": -122.4194,
  "alt": 52
}'
JavaScript (Fetch API)
const response = await fetch('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'X-API-Key': 'your_api_key_here',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "planet": "Moon",
    "date": "2025-04-15 10:37:00",
    "lat": 37.7749,
    "lon": -122.4194,
    "alt": 52
})
});

const data = await response.json();
console.log(data);
Python (Requests)
import requests

headers = {
    'X-API-Key': 'your_api_key_here',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
}

payload = {
    "planet": "Moon",
    "date": "2025-04-15 10:37:00",
    "lat": 37.7749,
    "lon": -122.4194,
    "alt": 52
}

response = requests.post('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions', headers=headers, json=payload)

data = response.json()
print(data)
Node.js (Native HTTPS)
const https = require('https');
const url = require('url');

const options = {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    'X-API-Key': 'your_api_key_here',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  }
};

const postData = JSON.stringify({
  "planet": "Moon",
  "date": "2025-04-15 10:37:00",
  "lat": 37.7749,
  "lon": -122.4194,
  "alt": 52
});

const req = https.request('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions', options, (res) => {
  let data = '';
  res.on('data', (chunk) => data += chunk);
  res.on('end', () => console.log(JSON.parse(data)));
});

req.write(postData);
req.end();
PHP (cURL)
<?php

$ch = curl_init();

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_URL, 'https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions');
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, true);
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST, 'POST');
curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER, [
    'X-API-Key: your_api_key_here',
    'Content-Type: application/json'
]);

curl_setopt($ch, CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS, json_encode({
    'planet': 'Moon',
    'date': '2025-04-15 10:37:00',
    'lat': 37.7749,
    'lon': -122.4194,
    'alt': 52
}));

$response = curl_exec($ch);
curl_close($ch);

$data = json_decode($response, true);
print_r($data);

?>
Go (net/http)
package main

import (
    "fmt"
    "io"
    "net/http"
    "bytes"
    "encoding/json"
)

func main() {
    payload := map[string]interface{}{
        "planet": "Moon",
        "date": "2025-04-15 10:37:00",
        "lat": "37.7749",
        "lon": "-122.4194",
        "alt": "52"
    }

    jsonPayload, _ := json.Marshal(payload)
    req, _ := http.NewRequest("POST", "https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions", bytes.NewBuffer(jsonPayload))

    req.Header.Set("X-API-Key", "your_api_key_here")
    req.Header.Set("Content-Type", "application/json")

    client := &http.Client{}
    resp, err := client.Do(req)
    if err != nil {
        panic(err)
    }
    defer resp.Body.Close()

    body, _ := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
    fmt.Println(string(body))
}
Ruby (Net::HTTP)
require 'net/http'
require 'json'

uri = URI('https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions')
http = Net::HTTP.new(uri.host, uri.port)
http.use_ssl = true

payload = {
  "planet": "Moon",
  "date": "2025-04-15 10:37:00",
  "lat": 37.7749,
  "lon": -122.4194,
  "alt": 52
}

request = Net::HTTP::Post.new(uri)
request['X-API-Key'] = 'your_api_key_here'
request['Content-Type'] = 'application/json'

request.body = payload.to_json

response = http.request(request)
puts JSON.pretty_generate(JSON.parse(response.body))
C# (HttpClient)
using System;
using System.Net.Http;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;

class Program
{
    static async Task Main(string[] args)
    {
        using var client = new HttpClient();
        client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Add("X-API-Key", "your_api_key_here");

        var jsonContent = @"{
        ""planet"": ""Moon"",
        ""date"": ""2025-04-15 10:37:00"",
        ""lat"": 37.7749,
        ""lon"": -122.4194,
        ""alt"": 52
}";
        var content = new StringContent(jsonContent, Encoding.UTF8, "application/json");

        var response = await client.PostAsync("https://api.apiverve.com/v1/planetpositions", content);
        response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();

        var responseBody = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync();
        Console.WriteLine(responseBody);
    }
}

Authentication

The Planet Positions API requires authentication via API key. Include your API key in the request header:

Required Header
X-API-Key: your_api_key_here

Learn more about authentication →

Interactive API Playground

Test the Planet Positions API directly in your browser with live requests and responses.

Parameters

The following parameters are available for the Planet Positions API:

Some Planet Positions parameters marked with Premium are available exclusively on paid plans.View pricing

Get Planet Position Data

ParameterTypeRequiredDescriptionDefaultExample
datePremiumstringoptional
The date to get planetary position data for (MM-DD-YYYY)
Format: date (e.g., 01-16-2026)
-01-16-2026
timestringoptional
The time of day for the calculation (HH:mm format, 24-hour). Defaults to 00:00 if not provided
Format: time (e.g., 21:00)
-21:00
latnumberrequired
The latitude of the observer
Range: -90 - 90
-37.7749
lonnumberrequired
The longitude of the observer
Range: -180 - 180
--122.4194
altnumberoptional
The altitude of the observer in meters
Range: min: 0
-52
planetstringrequired
The planet to get position data for
Supported values: sunmoonmercuryvenusmars
-mars

Response

The Planet Positions API returns responses in JSON, XML, YAML, and CSV formats:

Example Responses

JSON Response
200 OK
{
  "status": "ok",
  "error": null,
  "data": {
    "planet": "Moon",
    "isBelowHorizon": false,
    "date": "2025-04-15T10:37:00Z",
    "observer": {
      "latitude": 37.7749,
      "longitude": -122.4194
    },
    "rightAscension": {
      "hours": 15,
      "minutes": 13,
      "seconds": 11
    },
    "declination": {
      "degrees": -23,
      "minutes": 10,
      "seconds": 56
    },
    "distance": {
      "km": 402457.36,
      "lightTravelSeconds": 1.342,
      "astronomicalUnits": 0.003
    },
    "siderealTime": {
      "hours": 16,
      "minutes": 2,
      "seconds": 42
    },
    "hourAngle": {
      "hours": 0,
      "minutes": 49,
      "seconds": 31
    },
    "vectors": {
      "x": -0.0016452947779903913,
      "y": -0.0018463324771434563,
      "z": -0.0010590407236111441
    }
  }
}
XML Response
200 OK
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<response>
  <status>ok</status>
  <error xsi:nil="true" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"/>
  <data>
    <planet>Moon</planet>
    <isBelowHorizon>false</isBelowHorizon>
    <date>2025-04-15T10:37:00Z</date>
    <observer>
      <latitude>37.7749</latitude>
      <longitude>-122.4194</longitude>
    </observer>
    <rightAscension>
      <hours>15</hours>
      <minutes>13</minutes>
      <seconds>11</seconds>
    </rightAscension>
    <declination>
      <degrees>-23</degrees>
      <minutes>10</minutes>
      <seconds>56</seconds>
    </declination>
    <distance>
      <km>402457.36</km>
      <lightTravelSeconds>1.342</lightTravelSeconds>
      <astronomicalUnits>0.003</astronomicalUnits>
    </distance>
    <siderealTime>
      <hours>16</hours>
      <minutes>2</minutes>
      <seconds>42</seconds>
    </siderealTime>
    <hourAngle>
      <hours>0</hours>
      <minutes>49</minutes>
      <seconds>31</seconds>
    </hourAngle>
    <vectors>
      <x>-0.0016452947779903913</x>
      <y>-0.0018463324771434563</y>
      <z>-0.0010590407236111441</z>
    </vectors>
  </data>
</response>
YAML Response
200 OK
status: ok
error: null
data:
  planet: Moon
  isBelowHorizon: false
  date: '2025-04-15T10:37:00Z'
  observer:
    latitude: 37.7749
    longitude: -122.4194
  rightAscension:
    hours: 15
    minutes: 13
    seconds: 11
  declination:
    degrees: -23
    minutes: 10
    seconds: 56
  distance:
    km: 402457.36
    lightTravelSeconds: 1.342
    astronomicalUnits: 0.003
  siderealTime:
    hours: 16
    minutes: 2
    seconds: 42
  hourAngle:
    hours: 0
    minutes: 49
    seconds: 31
  vectors:
    x: -0.0016452947779903913
    'y': -0.0018463324771434563
    z: -0.0010590407236111441
CSV Response
200 OK
keyvalue
planetMoon
isBelowHorizonfalse
date2025-04-15T10:37:00Z
observer{latitude:37.7749,longitude:-122.4194}
rightAscension{hours:15,minutes:13,seconds:11}
declination{degrees:-23,minutes:10,seconds:56}
distance{km:402457.36,lightTravelSeconds:1.342,astronomicalUnits:0.003}
siderealTime{hours:16,minutes:2,seconds:42}
hourAngle{hours:0,minutes:49,seconds:31}
vectors{x:-0.0016452947779903913,y:-0.0018463324771434563,z:-0.0010590407236111441}

Response Structure

All API responses follow a consistent structure with the following fields:

FieldTypeDescriptionExample
statusstringIndicates whether the request was successful ("ok") or failed ("error")ok
errorstring | nullContains error message if status is "error", otherwise nullnull
dataobject | nullContains the API response data if successful, otherwise null{...}

Learn more about response formats →

Response Data Fields

When the request is successful, the data object contains the following fields:

Response fields marked with Premium are available exclusively on paid plans.View pricing
FieldTypeSample ValueDescription
planetstring"Moon"Name of the celestial body being observed
isBelowHorizonbooleanfalseWhether the planet is below horizon at observation location
datestring"2025-04-15T10:37:00Z"Observation date and time in ISO 8601 format
observerobject{...}-
â”” latitudenumber37.7749Observer latitude in decimal degrees
â”” longitudenumber-122.4194Observer longitude in decimal degrees
rightAscensionPremiumobject{...}Right ascension coordinates of the planet
â”” hoursnumber15Right ascension hours component (0-23)
â”” minutesnumber13Right ascension minutes component (0-59)
â”” secondsnumber11Right ascension seconds component (0-59)
declinationPremiumobject{...}Declination coordinates of the planet
â”” degreesnumber-23Declination degrees component (-90 to 90)
â”” minutesnumber10Declination minutes component (0-59)
â”” secondsnumber56Declination seconds component (0-59)
distancePremiumobject{...}Distance to the planet in various units
â”” kmnumber402457.36Distance to planet in kilometers
â”” lightTravelSecondsnumber1.342Light travel time in seconds from planet
â”” astronomicalUnitsnumber0.003Distance in astronomical units (AU)
siderealTimePremiumobject{...}Local sidereal time at observation
â”” hoursnumber16Local sidereal time hours component (0-23)

Headers

Required and optional headers for Planet Positions API requests:

Header NameRequiredExample ValueDescription
X-API-Keyrequiredyour_api_key_hereYour APIVerve API key. Found in your dashboard under API Keys.
Acceptoptionalapplication/jsonSpecify response format: application/json (default), application/xml, or application/yaml
User-AgentoptionalMyApp/1.0Identifies your application for analytics and debugging purposes
X-Request-IDoptionalreq_123456789Custom request identifier for tracking and debugging requests
Cache-Controloptionalno-cacheControl caching behavior for the request and response

Learn more about request headers →

GraphQL AccessALPHA

Access Planet Positions through GraphQL to combine it with other API calls in a single request. Query only the planet positions data you need with precise field selection, and orchestrate complex data fetching workflows.

Test Planet Positions in the GraphQL Explorer to confirm availability and experiment with queries.

Credit Cost: Each API called in your GraphQL query consumes its standard credit cost.

GraphQL Endpoint
POST https://api.apiverve.com/v1/graphql
GraphQL Query Example
query {
  planetpositions(
    input: {
      planet: "Moon"
      date: "2025-04-15 10:37:00"
      lat: 37.7749
      lon: -122.4194
      alt: 52
    }
  ) {
    planet
    isBelowHorizon
    date
    observer {
      latitude
      longitude
    }
    rightAscension {
      hours
      minutes
      seconds
    }
    declination {
      degrees
      minutes
      seconds
    }
    distance {
      km
      lightTravelSeconds
      astronomicalUnits
    }
    siderealTime {
      hours
      minutes
      seconds
    }
    hourAngle {
      hours
      minutes
      seconds
    }
    vectors {
      x
      y
      z
    }
  }
}

Note: Authentication is handled via the x-api-key header in your GraphQL request, not as a query parameter.

CORS Support

The Planet Positions API supports Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS) with wildcard configuration, allowing you to call Planet Positions directly from browser-based applications without proxy servers.

CORS HeaderValueDescription
Access-Control-Allow-Origin*Accepts requests from any origin
Access-Control-Allow-Methods*Accepts any HTTP method
Access-Control-Allow-Headers*Accepts any request headers

Browser Usage: You can call Planet Positions directly from JavaScript running in the browser without encountering CORS errors. No proxy server or additional configuration needed.

Learn more about CORS support →

Rate Limiting

Planet Positions API requests are subject to rate limiting based on your subscription plan. These limits ensure fair usage and maintain service quality for all Planet Positions users.

PlanRate LimitDescription
Free5 requests/minHard rate limit enforced - exceeding will return 429 errors
StarterNo LimitProduction ready - standard traffic priority
ProNo LimitProduction ready - preferred traffic priority
MegaNo LimitProduction ready - highest traffic priority

Learn more about rate limiting →

Rate Limit Headers

When rate limits apply, each Planet Positions response includes headers to help you track your usage:

HeaderDescription
X-RateLimit-LimitMaximum number of requests allowed per time window
X-RateLimit-RemainingNumber of requests remaining in the current window
X-RateLimit-ResetUnix timestamp when the rate limit window resets

Handling Rate Limits

Free Plan: When you exceed your rate limit, Planet Positions returns a 429 Too Many Requests status code. Your application should implement appropriate backoff logic to handle this gracefully.

Paid Plans: No rate limiting or throttling applied. All paid plans (Starter, Pro, Mega) are production-ready.

Best Practices for Planet Positions:

  • Monitor the rate limit headers to track your Planet Positions usage (Free plan only)
  • Cache planet positions responses where appropriate to reduce API calls
  • Upgrade to Pro or Mega for guaranteed no-throttle Planet Positions performance

Note: Planet Positions rate limits are separate from credit consumption. You may have credits remaining but still hit rate limits when using Planet Positions on Free tier.

Error Codes

The Planet Positions API uses standard HTTP status codes to indicate success or failure:

CodeMessageDescriptionSolution
200OKRequest successful, data returnedNo action needed - request was successful
400Bad RequestInvalid request parameters or malformed requestCheck required parameters and ensure values match expected formats
401UnauthorizedMissing or invalid API keyInclude x-api-key header with valid API key from dashboard
403ForbiddenAPI key lacks permission or insufficient creditsCheck credit balance in dashboard or upgrade plan
429Too Many RequestsRate limit exceeded (Free: 5 req/min)Implement request throttling or upgrade to paid plan
500Internal Server ErrorServer error occurredRetry request after a few seconds, contact support if persists
503Service UnavailableAPI temporarily unavailableWait and retry, check status page for maintenance updates

Learn more about error handling →

Need help? Contact support with your X-Request-ID for assistance.

Integrate Planet Positions with SDKs

Get started quickly with official Planet Positions SDKs for your preferred language. Each library handles authentication, request formatting, and error handling automatically.

Available for Node.js, Python, C#/.NET, and Android/Java. All SDKs are open source and regularly updated.

Integrate Planet Positions with No-Code API Tools

Connect the Planet Positions API to your favorite automation platform without writing code. Build workflows that leverage planet positions data across thousands of apps.

All platforms use your same API key to access Planet Positions. Visit our integrations hub for step-by-step setup guides.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I get an API key for Planet Positions?
Sign up for a free account at dashboard.apiverve.com. Your API key will be automatically generated and available in your dashboard. The same key works for Planet Positions and all other APIVerve APIs. The free plan includes 1,000 credits plus a 500 credit bonus.
How many credits does Planet Positions cost?

Each successful Planet Positions API call consumes credits based on plan tier. Check the pricing section above for the exact credit cost. Failed requests and errors don't consume credits, so you only pay for successful planet positions lookups.

Can I use Planet Positions in production?

The free plan is for testing and development only. For production use of Planet Positions, upgrade to a paid plan (Starter, Pro, or Mega) which includes commercial use rights, no attribution requirements, and guaranteed uptime SLAs. All paid plans are production-ready.

Can I use Planet Positions from a browser?
Yes! The Planet Positions API supports CORS with wildcard configuration, so you can call it directly from browser-based JavaScript without needing a proxy server. See the CORS section above for details.
What happens if I exceed my Planet Positions credit limit?

When you reach your monthly credit limit, Planet Positions API requests will return an error until you upgrade your plan or wait for the next billing cycle. You'll receive notifications at 80% and 95% usage to give you time to upgrade if needed.

What's Next?

Continue your journey with these recommended resources

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