Planet Weather for the Week of July 20, 2008

SkyWatch: Moon phase of the week: 7/25 -- The Moon enters Her Last (aka Third) Quarter phase at 2:42 PM EDT, when She will be low in the western sky and still visible from most of the continental U.S. Skywatching events of the week: All week -- in the west-northwest after sunset, Mars and Saturn remain in close proximity to each other and to the bright blue astrological "royal star" Regulus in the constellation Leo. At the same time, low in the southeast skywatchers can view the bright rising of Jupiter, with much of its swirling, highly reflective cloud-tops now brightly lit by the Sun (as viewed from our angle). Space news of the week: According to NASA scientists, new evidence from various Mars space probes shows that Mars was once, literally, the "land of a thousand lakes," sporting large bodies of water (possibly even harboring life). This was billions of years ago, but it may still be possible to discover evidence of that life with future probes. Go out! Look up!

 Knowing when VOC Moons occur is key to planning your successful week!

 

The Void-of-course (VOC) Moon is a kind of limbo. As it reaches the end of a sign, the Moon makes no major aspect to another planet before it enters the next sign. VOC is best for less outcome-oriented activity, since VOC often means detours, distractions, drifting, or delays. If you want specific outcomes, or if timeliness is critical, don’t use a VOC Moon time. VOC is best for processing, imagining, creating, and open-ended activities, like parties, research, or cleaning your desk/closet for instance! It is said that when a new action is initiated during VOC, “nothing will come of it,” or energies go in unplanned directions, which may not necessarily be negative.

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Week of 7/20/08 – Tuesday (partially), Friday and Saturday are the most active energetically and potentially very productive days – more Moon or planetary aspects for engagement and/or producing results. On 7/20/08, the Moon is VOC/Aquarius @ 7:25PM to 9:08PM EDT  – On 7/23/08, the Moon is VOC/Pisces from 2:38AM to 4:22AM EDT – On 7/25/08, the Moon is VOC/Aries from 7:30AM to 9:14AM EDT.

 

PlanetPatterns:

The following planetary energy patterns flavor the day and are felt or experienced often hours before and after their exact culmination. They remain effective, certainly until the next major planetary pattern comes along to shift the energy gears.

 

The Sun enters fixed, fire Leo on 7/22/08 @ 6:55AM EDT. The fixed signs, such as Leo, always display the fullness of the season. In this case, in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s summer. Leo is heat, aliveness, action, energy, fun, and enjoyment of life, and rules the heart and back. It is in this season that we may feel the joy of more leisure time and the energy to express ourselves more freely. Leo can take us back to the carefree days of childhood, when we roamed and discovered the essentials of life for the first time. During Leo, we either seek or treasure moments that allow pure joy to well up within, often in the form of hearty and heartfelt laughter. Think of the abandon of children and their sense of wonder. During Leo you can remember and recapture some of that essence, and Leo also teaches to trust the deepest wisdom of your heart. Leos know how to love or what it takes to love. They are demonstrative, as most fire signs are, and they are typically (but not always) loyal. Leo’s fiery nature brings energetic commitment to whatever or whomever they love and a natural gusto for life.

 

Mercury in cardinal, water Cancer trine (120deg.) Uranus in mutable, water Pisces @ 22deg. on 7/22/08 @ 5:10PM EDT. These two planets electrify each other and reinforce or support each other’s essential energy to create new mental pathways. Lightning bolts fly and all sorts of ideas are hatched. It’s a rebellious and evolutionary combination and offers much creative invention and investigation. It’s not the same old thing but new twists and turns to arrive at something original and fresh. Expect to hear of some controversy, something out of the ordinary. Listen to your intuition and you may yet unravel something that has been perplexing. In these water signs, compassion and understanding rise to new levels of nuance with a willingness to alleviate suffering in any form, including one’s own.

 

Mercury enters fixed, fire Leo on 7/26/08 @ 7:48AM EDT until 8/10/08. Mercury joins the Sun in Leo and creativity reigns far and wide! We can’t forget that Leo is also stubborn and when it gets an idea into its head, it won’t easily let go. When Mercury travels in this royal sign, sometimes self-righteousness arises or feelings of superiority or entitlement. I think that’s partly why the aristocracy got their heads cut off during the French revolution – too much entitlement and unfair advantage over others. So let that be a lesson – to not get too high and mighty! Even though you may think you have the perfect answer, it certainly isn’t the only one, or your opinion is not necessarily the right one. Often Leo does things in such innocence; it’s hard to stay angry at them, especially when they turn on their charm.

 

Mars in mutable, earth Virgo trine Jupiter Rx in cardinal, earth Capricorn @ 15deg. on 7/26/08 @ 6:04PM EDT. Your responsibilities are on your mind, even in the midst of this playful time of the year. This is actually a good time for some long-range planning, even though Jupiter is still retrograde. You can still lay some groundwork and feel the surge forward when Jupiter turns direct on 9/7/08. You may feel a bit overwhelmed with details and the nagging thoughts of too many things to take care of or follow up on. Make a list of priorities and take it one task at a time. This is also the time to assess your skills and how you want to utilize them in the months or years to come.

 

NewsBits: Troubled Banks: Indy Mac, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac! Is this another sign of Pluto in Capricorn beginning to erode seemingly well-established structures? Here we have a clear indication of an opposition in action, namely Capricorn and Cancer. Do you remember the 6 month Mars retrograde in Cancer? It began at the end of September 2007, and ended in early May 2008 (it dipped into Gemini a bit, and we started this year with a retrograde Mars). Mars always indicates where the action is taking place. The emphasis in Cancer brought us the crescendo and bursting of the housing bubble and the ensuing mortgage crises. Now with bank failures, the structures that supported the housing bubble and approved those shaky mortgages are feeling the repercussions. Indy Mac was a big bank and the government has taken it over to prevent further negative economic ripples. The question on everyone’s mind is…will there be other banks crumbling? It’s possible, if they overextended themselves on bad mortgages.

 

Nelson Mandela Turns 90! The story of Nelson Mandela’s life is nothing short of incredible and remarkable. The man survived 27 years as a political prisoner – that alone is difficult to fathom. Born on 7/18/1918, time unknown, the son of a tribal chief, he was educated as a lawyer and became an instrumental leader in the African National Congress (ANC). He fought apartheid as ANC President and sought to organize guerilla-style warfare against the white national government, when reason failed and blacks were being oppressed. He was tried for treason with others and sentenced to life imprisonment on 6/12/64, and was finally released on 2/11/1990.  He was and is seen as the symbol of resistance to apartheid and any form of inequality. He refused to compromise his political ideas in order to gain freedom. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1993 and became the first democratically elected President of a free South Africa from 1994 to 1999. Mandela is a stalwart Cancer, the sign of the people, with his Mars in Libra, the sign of balance, fairness, and equal rights. His exact Mercury conjunct Saturn gave him the necessary mental discipline to survive imprisonment. His Moon in Scorpio in a flowing trine to his Sun bestowed a sense of inner harmony that he was evidently able to access and the emotional fortitude and natural ability to reinvent himself that was necessary for his survival. His Moon is likely square Uranus in liberty-loving Aquarius. That same Uranus is trine his Venus in Gemini. His chart is all about urges and desires for freedom, humanity, and the stubbornness of his convictions, and his unflinching dedication to his chosen cause. What an inspiration to a nation and the world. Mandela claims he was inspired by the life of Ghandi! Happy Birthday Nelson Mandela and many more!