Mercury trine Uranus

Planetary news this week: Entering the brave new world

Astrological update for the week of January 23-30, 2023

art by Jason Yenter

The Uranus factor. The influence of Uranus continues its dominance, having just turned direct and remaining stationary until mid-March. Stationary planets exert a powerful impact as their energies are laser focused for a longer period of time. We just had the Uranus-ruled Aquarius New Moon which was a SuperMoon, at its closest point to Earth (perigee).  The co-ruler of Aquarius, Saturn, is itself in Aquarius where it shares the stage with the modern ruler Uranus.

Uranus is the innovator and paradigm buster; under its influence we are inspired or forced to break out of a situation or way of thinking which no longer works. As we continue the march into the changes of the decade, the world we knew will continue to fall away. This offers an opportunity for creative innovation in the rebuilding of the world, and of our own personal lives as well.

Let’s take a look at what else is in store for us this week. (Dates and times are for the Eastern time zone, here is a time zone converter to adjust for your locality.)

Monday January 23. As the week begins we are still unwinding from the Aquarius New Moon, with the Moon still in Aquarius for the first part of the day. All of that sparkly electrical charge begins to settle down just after midnight on Monday, and then when the Moon enters Pisces at 12:35 pm EST it becomes easier to find a harmonic flow through which to direct our thoughts and actions. (Moon conjunct Saturn 4:24 am, Moon conjunct Venus 5:19 am, Moon enters Pisces 12:35 pm.)

Tuesday January 24. Today is […]

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By |2023-01-22T16:03:52-05:00January 23rd, 2023|Planetary news this week|0 Comments
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Astrological news this week: Mars enters Gemini and the Uranus station

Astrological update for the week of August 15-22, 2022

artist unknown

What is the Uranus station? Every planet appears to travel retrograde at some time or another – the outer planets (Uranus, Neptune and Pluto) are retrograde for about half the year. Saturn and Jupiter turn retrograde about once a year. Mars turns retrograde about every two years, Venus about every eighteen months, and Mercury about every three months. Obviously planets don’t really travel retrograde, but geocentric astrology observes the motion of the planets from Earth and we interpret the symbolism of this motion.

These cycles of normal movement alternating with retrogrades are like the ebb and flow of the ocean, and once we learn to let go to the flow of retrograde cycles they feel as natural as standing in the waves. When planets are in their normal orbital speed they are doing business as usual, and when their motion appears to be retrograde they are operating at a more personal level, and sometimes inspiring us to go back to review patterns of the past.

When a planet appears to change direction it will seem to stand still, remaining at the same degree of a sign for a period of days, weeks or sometimes even months. On August 24th, Uranus will turn retrograde at nearly 19 degrees of Taurus and will travel less than a degree until October, meaning the influence of Uranus to awaken and challenge our existing paradigms will be at its most powerful. Uranus has been within a degree of that point since June.

Those of us (me!) who have planets between about 15 and 23 degrees of the fixed signs (Taurus, Scorpio, Leo and Aquarius) will be most affected as Uranus forces us to break […]

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By |2022-08-15T07:51:04-04:00August 15th, 2022|Uncategorized|0 Comments
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Astrological news this week: Stelliums, Virgo Full Moon, and Equinox news

Planetary forecast for the week of March 14-21, 2022.

art by Gwen Davies

You might have read some different articles this week about the intensity of the planets this week because the planets are all in a bunch. Astrological news is just like any other kind of media – we thrive on drama to bring in the eyeballs. But it seems to me that this week’s astrology is not nearly as dramatic as it was a few weeks ago when the Moon was in Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces and the planets were in even a tighter window of the zodiac wheel.

As this chart shows, on February 27th all of the visible planetary bodies (plus Neptune and Pluto) were within 60 degrees of the chart wheel which is very tight indeed. Marc Edmund Jones named this chart pattern the “bundle” when describing the natal chart – an intense focus which can lack perspective. This tight bundle intensified around February 26th with the Moon in Capricorn entering the bundle, and began to ease when the Moon moved into Aries on March 3rd and departed from the crowded area of the zodiac.

In any case, don’t be alarmed when you read articles like this, things are difficult enough in the world without adding unnecessary panic and anxiety to the mix.

Virgo Full Moon: The Moon will be full in Virgo on March 18, 2022 at 3:17 am EDT, just before the equinox.  Every Full Moon is full of gifts and blessings, and at this time when we have the Sun in a stellium in Pisces encouraging dreams and inspiration but also confusion, the Virgo Moon helps us to ground into our bodies […]

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By |2022-03-14T08:13:26-04:00March 14th, 2022|Planetary news this week|0 Comments
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Astrological forecast for the week of August 16, 2021: Retrograde season and a Full Moon

There is a lot going on this week, so grab a cup of coffee or tea and let’s get started!

Retrograde season. This week Uranus turns retrograde, but it has been virtually stationary at 14 degrees Taurus for six weeks.  When a planet prepares for a direction change it appears to be at a standstill, just like a car that is making a U-turn.  At that time its influence can be the most potent, especially if it is hitting a sensitive point in your chart (anywhere from 10-20 degrees of the fixed signs Taurus, Scorpio, Leo or Aquarius).

With Uranus turning retrograde we will have four major planets retrograde plus Chiron, for a total of five.  That is on the high side of normal and nowhere close to the retrograde energies of 2020 when every planet which could turn retrograde WAS retrograde.  Still, in September Mercury will turn retrograde and then there will be six so we are definitely in retrograde season.  This means that life will not progress at the pace which we strive for, and there may be a lot of looking in the rear view mirror to see where mistakes were made, and having to make those repairs before we can look ahead once again.  Meanwhile the Uranian influence is powerful – revolution, reaction, breaking free of restraints and regulations – all of these energies are deep at work to rip away the trappings of the old age as we go hurtling into the new one.

Venus enters Libra.  Venus enters its own sign of Libra just after midnight on August 16.  Venus is most at home in Libra, and for the next few weeks harmony and a peaceful experience will be of paramount importance.  Venus craves […]

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By |2021-08-16T07:41:58-04:00August 16th, 2021|Planetary news this week|7 Comments
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