What is the first body's midpoint, and does the third close recover above it?
Reveal the worked answer
98.75; yes, 99.50 is above it.
Calculate from the supplied OHLC, then distinguish geometry from the uncertain future.
Technical Analysis · TA-02a · Core
Morning star
How do you recognize morning star without treating it as an automatic entry?
What you will learn and prerequisites
- Read the exact candle geometry.
- Identify prior context.
- State a confirming and an invalidating branch.
Read first: Market structure comes first, Candlestick anatomy and the ten-pattern path
A morning star describes a three-part change: a forceful bearish body, a small-bodied pause, and a bullish recovery. The middle candle alone is indecision, not a buy signal. The third candle is what changes the sequence.
Put location before the name
The fictional setup occurs after a decline into a premarked 95–96 support area. That reference must be known before identifying the signal; otherwise a trader can invent convenient support or resistance afterward. Match the pattern's timeframe with the context timeframe and state when the bars finish.
The illustration is an original teaching sequence, not an alert, backtest or historical probability. The user's candle panel supplies the syllabus, not a specification for automated trading thresholds.
Read the geometry
The first body spans 101 to 96.50, with midpoint 98.75. The third close, 99.50, recovers above that midpoint. The small second body sits near the decline's low. Daily-stock gap conventions and continuous-market variations must be distinguished rather than silently mixed.
Walk both next-bar branches
A confirming branch for this particular process is a later close above 100 followed by a retest holding the recovered area. An invalidating branch is a subsequent close below the middle candle's 95 low. Write both before watching the next interval. Confirmation is additional evidence, not certainty; failure means the original premise needs reassessment.
Even a visually confirmed pattern can offer poor execution economics. Check the next obstacle, spread, available liquidity and consequence of a failed entry. A bullish candle does not automatically justify buying an expensive call, and a bearish one does not justify uncovered short calls.
Read the completed bars
Use these exact data: bar 1: open 101.00, high 101.40, low 96.00, close 96.50; bar 2: open 95.80, high 97.00, low 95.00, close 96.00; bar 3: open 96.20, high 100.00, low 96.00, close 99.50. Begin with open and close, then inspect the shadows. Compare completed intervals; do not assume a particular high–low order within one interval.
The first body spans 101 to 96.50, with midpoint 98.75. The third close, 99.50, recovers above that midpoint. The small second body sits near the decline's low. Daily-stock gap conventions and continuous-market variations must be distinguished rather than silently mixed.
Now rehearse the favorable and adverse branches above. Explain what would change your confidence without changing the already-completed candle. The chart and popup use this same OHLC sequence, so the lesson can be reproduced numerically rather than memorized from a decorative drawing.
Open the calculation without leaving this lesson
Morning star—fictional completed intervals
Vertical: USD per share
Horizontal: Completed interval
Hollow body: close at or above open. Filled body: close below open. Neither color is a trade instruction.
Read the graph as a data table
| Interval | Open | High | Low | Close |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 101 | 101.4 | 96 | 96.5 |
| 2 | 95.8 | 97 | 95 | 96 |
| 3 | 96.2 | 100 | 96 | 99.5 |
The named shape is not a guarantee
The adverse branch is a subsequent close below the middle candle's 95 low. Maintaining the original label does not restore the premise. A similar-looking candle in the middle of overlapping range trade may have much less useful context.
Another failure is hindsight selection: locating only successful examples after seeing their outcomes. A usable process needs stated definitions, transaction costs and out-of-sample evaluation before any claimed edge.
Check your understanding
Try the question before revealing its answer. These are reading checks, not trading certification or a site completion record.
Does this pattern establish a profitable options entry?
Reveal the worked answer
No.
Instrument price, time, liquidity and the loss scenario must also be evaluated.
Recognize the morning star, locate it, and explain both confirmation and failure before discussing a trade.
Sources, assumptions and downloadable script
External references support definitions and conventions. Worked scenarios and prose are original. No current quotes or dealer inventory are claimed.
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