Swiss Ephemeris API Server

A custom Swiss Ephemeris REST API server built for Google Apps Script integration. Provides planetary positions, house cusps, and chart data with Swiss Ephemeris accuracy.

🚀 Quick Deploy to Railway

Step 1: Create GitHub Repository

1. Go to https://github.com/new
2. Name it: swisseph-api
3. Make it Public (required for Railway free tier)
4. Click "Create repository"

Step 2: Upload Your Code

From your terminal in this directory:

cd /Users/lisa/swisseph/swisseph-api-server

# Initialize git
git init

# Add all files
git add .

# Commit
git commit -m "Initial commit: Swiss Ephemeris API"

# Add your GitHub repo (replace YOUR_USERNAME)
git remote add origin https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/swisseph-api.git

# Push to GitHub
git branch -M main
git push -u origin main

Step 3: Deploy to Railway

1. Go to: https://railway.app
2. Sign up with GitHub (free)
3. Click: "New Project"
4. Select: "Deploy from GitHub repo"
5. Choose: Your swisseph-api repository
6. Railway will automatically:
   • Detect Node.js
   • Run npm install
   • Start the server
   • Give you a public URL

Step 4: Get Your API URL

1. In Railway, click on your deployment
2. Go to Settings tab
3. Click Generate Domain under "Networking"
4. Copy your URL: https://swisseph-api-production.up.railway.app

Done! Your API is live! 🎉

---

📡 API Endpoints

Base URL

https://your-app.railway.app

1. Get Planetary Positions

Endpoint: POST /api/planets

Request Body:

{
  "year": 1967,
  "month": 4,
  "day": 17,
  "hour": 6,
  "min": 40,
  "lat": 40.8928,
  "lon": -73.9734
}

Response:

{
  "sun": {
    "longitude": 27.123456,
    "full_degree": 27.123456,
    "sign": "Aries",
    "degree": 27.123456,
    "speed": 1.0,
    "isRetro": "false"
  },
  "moon": { ... },
  ...
}

2. Get House Cusps

Endpoint: POST /api/houses

Request Body:

{
  "year": 1967,
  "month": 4,
  "day": 17,
  "hour": 6,
  "min": 40,
  "lat": 40.8928,
  "lon": -73.9734,
  "house_type": "placidus"
}

House Types: placidus, whole_sign, koch, equal, campanus

Response:

{
  "ascendant": {
    "longitude": 0.123456,
    "full_degree": 0.123456,
    "sign": "Aries",
    "degree": 0.123456
  },
  "house1": { ... },
  "house2": { ... },
  ...
  "house12": { ... }
}

3. Get Complete Chart

Endpoint: POST /api/chart

Request Body: Same as /api/planets

Response:

{
  "planets": { ... },
  "houses": { ... }
}

---

💰 Costs

Railway Free Tier:

• $5 USD free credit every month
• Enough for 500,000+ requests
• Execution time: 500 hours/month
• Perfect for personal use!

If you exceed free tier: ~$0.000001 per request

---

🧪 Test Your API

Once deployed, test with:

curl -X POST https://your-app.railway.app/api/planets \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "year": 1967,
    "month": 4,
    "day": 17,
    "hour": 6,
    "min": 40,
    "lat": 40.8928,
    "lon": -73.9734
  }'

Or visit: https://your-app.railway.app in browser to see status.

---

🔧 Local Development

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Start server
npm start

# Server runs at http://localhost:3000

---

📚 Next Steps

After deployment:

1. Copy your Railway URL
2. Update Google Apps Script files with your URL
3. Test with sample chart
4. Deploy your charts!

---

🛟 Troubleshooting

Build Failed?

• Make sure all files are committed to GitHub
• Check Railway logs for error messages

Can't access API?

• Make sure you generated a domain in Railway settings
• Check if deployment is "Active"

Getting errors?

• Test locally first: npm start
• Check server logs in Railway dashboard

---

✨ Features

• ✅ Swiss Ephemeris accuracy
• ✅ All major planets + asteroids
• ✅ Multiple house systems
• ✅ Fast responses (~50ms)
• ✅ CORS enabled
• ✅ JSON responses
• ✅ Error handling
• ✅ Free hosting

---

📝 License

MIT - Use freely for personal or commercial projects