Mercury Archives - Astrology readings and writings by Lynn Hayes

Mercury Retrograde Musings: Blogging is hard

When Mercury is retrograde we tend to look back at the past and revise things. This morning I was going through my list of astrology blogs that I have followed over the years and discovered that almost half of the blogs on my list are inactive. Several of them ended with posts that explain why the astrologers aren’t writing any more.

When I began this blog in November of 2005 there were just a handful of astrology bloggers. Of those originals, some of us – Elsa Panizzon, Robert Wilkinson, Jeffrey Kishner, April Elliott Kent, Nancy Sommers, Eric Francis, Michael O’Reilly, John Townley – are still blogging in one form or another. Each of us had a completely unique approach to astrological blogging – Elsa is down to earth and practical, Robert is philosophical and spiritual, Jeffrey’s Astrology at the Movies blog covered cultural trends, April’s brand of humor and insight is unique, Nancy’s coverage of politics in difficult times brought a new level of understanding to the mundane.

Over the years as the blogging world exploded literally hundreds of new astrology blogs have come along. This has been a huge benefit, making it easy for many thousands of readers to learn more about the magnificent spiritual science that we love. However, over the years many bloggers have given up and I don’t blame them. Finding something interesting enough to capture readers several times a week, much less daily, is no small feat.

I have literally thousands of articles in the archives and I’m going to begin digging them out on some sort of regular basis because some of them are still relevant and, I hope, still interesting. This kind of thing is perfect […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2014-10-15T08:31:07-04:00October 15th, 2014|Astrology in my world|0 Comments

Mercury has a tail!

Two satellites peering at the sun have snapped photos of Mercury’s long, comet-like tail, but it took an amateur astronomer to bring the pictures to light.

The twin satellites are part of NASA’s Stereo (Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory) mission. They zip around the sun in Earth’s orbit, one behind our planet and one ahead of it. Their main job is to monitor the sun and its atmosphere….

Scientists have known for years that Mercury has a long tail. From Earth it can be seen by analyzing light from sodium gas sputtered off Mercury’s surface. The sun’s intense radiation pressure pushes many sodium atoms off into space, creating a tail that extends far beyond the planet.

read more here…

Often astrologers look at the physical makeup of a planet to determine its energetic influence. For example Uranus, with its eccentric orbit, rules eccentricity. Neptune is shrouded in mists, and it has a similar effect on our lives. Mercury is known as the “winged footed messenger,” and now it appears that the planet actually has wings as well!

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By Lynn Hayes|2010-10-04T18:03:25-04:00October 4th, 2010|Astronomy|1 Comment

Mercury direct! And other planetary news

Mercury turns direct today after three weeks in retrograde motion, so after today communication will get a bit easier and we are less subject to all kinds of snafus. It will take a few days for Mercury to pick up steam after its change of motion, but Mercury is in its own sign of Virgo where it is strong and able to operate without hindrance.

Additionally, Mercury is in harmonious aspect with both Pluto (transformational power) and Venus (the power of attraction and love), so there is an agility now with the mind and communication matters that will serve us well.

As I wrote last week, the influence of Pluto is still strong and tomorrow it too changes direction as it begins its six-month forward travels. The outer planets travel retrograde for six months out of the year, ensuring that we retrace the steps of any path that needs greater balance or perfection. When Pluto begins moving direct again, its transformative power will be seen in the outer expression of our lives to a greater degree.

That transformative power deepens even more tomorrow as Mars, the planet of drive and desire, enters the passionate sign of Scorpio. Mars is the traditional ruler of Scorpio and is quite at home in the intense emotional drive of the Scorpio influence. But some of us are not quite as comfortable with this degree of intensity and you may need to take some time to acclimate to this new energy. I’ll be writing more about Mars in Scorpio over the next few days.

For daily planetary news, visit my Facebook and Twitter pages.

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By Lynn Hayes|2010-09-12T16:25:29-04:00September 12th, 2010|Astronomy|Comments Off

NASA and Mercury Retrograde

NASA seems to really like Mercury retrograde. NASA first launched the Discovery space shuttle on August 30, 1984 when Mercury was retrograde. The Discovery launched the Hubble telescope on April 24 1990 when Mercury was retrograde.

After the initial launch of the Hubble scientists discovered that the optical mirror was flawed. Because the Hubble was supposed to be shooting photographs of deep space, this was a real problem.

Often Mercury Retrograde periods can be used to repair problems from previous Mercury Retrograde events. For example, in July of 2006 problems during Mercury Rx kept the Discovery from a successful launch, and the December launch, also during Mercury Rx was successful.

Yesterday, with Mercury Retrograde, the Atlantis space shuttle was launched with a crew to repair the Hubble telescope. Immediately after its launch scientists discovered some damage to the exterior of the shuttle but it was termed “minor.”

This is a good illustration that Mercury Retrograde periods do not necessarily need to be feared. Yes, problems occur but they are rarely fatal.

Joseph Mina adds in the comments:

NASA was created by an act of Congress on July 29, 1958. At that time, Mercury at 2 Virgo conjuncted Pluto at 1 Virgo, both sextile Neptune at 2 Scorpio. Just prior, on July 20th, Mercury entered its retrograde shadow at 24 Leo with the retrograde station occurring on August 9 at 7 Virgo. So Mercury Retrograde would be a natural rhythm for NASA. Add the Scorpion juice of the Pluto conjunction to the mix and you have some high octane rocket propellant. One other interesting astrological point – Chiron in the July 29 chart is 21 Aquarius. As transiting Chiron is now moving back and forth over that degree with Jupiter, a renewed energy is building to take NASA in a different direction. Very happy the Hubble […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2009-05-13T08:02:06-04:00May 13th, 2009|Astronomy|Comments Off

What is Mercury Retrograde good for?

When we say a planet is retrograde we mean that it appears to move backwards from our perspective on earth. Astrology is not astronomically correct because we are observing the planets from earth rather than objectively from space. When a planet is traveling retrograde, its effect can be more intensely personal and there is a sense of looking back into the past to go back over events that have already taken place.

Mercury rules the processing of information and the mental function, and it also presides over small machinery, short trips, and messages. While Mercury is retrograde, we can expect glitches in all of these areas as our attention is drawn back into any area that needs to be revisited and given a second look. Often we find breakdowns in our email and communication systems, which can usually be traced back to human error. Contracts signed and agreements made during Mercury Rx periods often need to be renegotiated and plans made often need to be altered.

Because our attention is turned inward and backward during these periods (Mercury will be retrograde until May 30), they are excellent times for anything that needs a do-over. Anything that begins with the prefix “re-” (from the Latin “back” or “again”) is suitable during the Mercury retrograde period: Rewriting a manuscript, renovating your home, returning to a place you have been before to learn something new, retreat into contemplation and meditation. Try to avoid buying a new phone system or a new computer until Mercury turns direct, and don’t make any major changes to your software systems.

If you do need to begin a new project, hire a new employee, or sign a contract during this time, try to be as clear as possible and have all agreements in writing, but expect that there will be some […]

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By Lynn Hayes|2009-05-04T08:34:58-04:00May 4th, 2009|Planetary cycles|Comments Off