Planet Weather for the Week of August 30, 2009

NewsBits: The life of Edward M. Kennedy. The last of the famous Kennedy clan brothers succumbed to a brain tumor on 8/25/09. The “Lion of the Senate” was born with Jupiter in the lion’s sign of Leo on February 22, 1932 @ 3:58AM, EST, Dorchester, MA (AA data). His mighty roar is easily seen in the conjunction of Mars/Aquarius with Mercury/Aquarius. Mars sparked his words (Mercury) and gave them the power to speak the truth, to see the big picture, and have the wider perspective of the sign Aquarius. The Senator from Massachusetts experienced a life filled with more tragedies than most. His oldest brother was killed in WW2, the next two were assassinated, one sister was institutionalized, his famous nephew John Kennedy Jr. died with 2 others as his plane crashed into the sea, and these are just the highlights. His major personal scandal, the accident at Chappaquiddick, that took the life of a young woman, probably cost him a bid for the Presidency. Still, Ted Kennedy transformed himself from those experiences with his tireless legislative battles, the main one being health care for all, are his legacy.

President Obama called Edward Kennedy the “Soul of the Democratic Party.” How apt for a Full-Moon birth – Sun/Pisces opposite Moon/Neptune/Virgo. Virgo/Pisces is the struggle of real vs. unreal, body & soul, spiritual and practical. Another interesting aspect in his chart is Venus/Aries conjunct Uranus/Aries in the house of brothers and sisters, and indeed he was born into an unusual and spirited clan, who changed the face of American politics.

 The powerful Solar eclipse of 7/21/09 @ 29 Cancer was exactly opposite his birth Saturn at 29 Capricorn. Saturn was ruler of his Ascendant, which is the primary identification of the self, and this eclipse foretold his culmination and initiation into the after-life. Jupiter conjunct Neptune/Aquarius were hovering on his Mars/Mercury conjunction in Aquarius, certainly having much to do with the brain and thinking as stated before. And the infamous Saturn/Virgo opposite Uranus/Pisces aspect, we’ve discussed, also played its role, conjoining his Nodes in Houses 2/8 – the place of talent/transformation/legacy (and yes, death).  A few days before his death, the current transiting North Node shifted into another sign, 29 Capricorn, again landing exactly on Kennedy’s Saturn. An early supporter of Barack Obama, Ted Kennedy recognized the paradigm shift, and the fulfillment of seeds his brother Jack had planted. Although in frail health, he made it a point to attend the Democratic National Convention and rouse the crowd for Obama. His tireless voice for the people will be missed, especially by Massachusetts.

SkyWatch: Moon phase of the week: 9/4 -- The Moon reaches perfect Fullness at 12:03 PM EDT, at 12 degrees of Pisces. In Native American and folk traditions, this is called the Corn Moon (sometimes the Fruit Moon) in anticipation of the proverbial Harvest Moon up next. Skywatching events of the week: 9/1 -- Venus passes just south of the Beehive star cluster. Their point of closest approach occurs near midnight well after Venus has set but since Venus moves along the Zodiac at a relatively slow pace (compared to the Moon), planet and cluster will still be fairly close when Venus rises a couple of hours ahead of the Sun in early morning. (A star cluster is a kind of mini-galaxy orbiting our Milky Way galaxy.) 9/2 -- The Moon makes a fairly close pass by Jupiter while they are still well below the eastern horizon, but the two will rise together a few hours later just after sunset. Space news of the week: The Space Shuttle Discovery is marking its Silver (25th) Anniversary with another launch to the International Space Station this week or next. Discovery's first flight occurred in August of 1984. Since then, this hard-working veteran of the shuttle fleet has flown 36 missions and logged enough miles to get to Mars and back -- a manned project SkyWatch hopes NASA will undertake in the not-too-distant future!  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 8/30/09 – Monday, Tuesday, Thursday are the most active energetically and potentially very productive days – more Moon or planetary aspects for engagement with others or projects, and/or producing results. Saturday has the most difficult or challenging energies. On 8/31/09, the Moon is VOC/Capricorn from 2:09PM to 11:43PM EDT  – On 9/3/09, the Moon is VOC/Aquarius from 1:20AM to 11:58AM EDT – On 9/5/09, the Moon is VOC/Pisces from 12:53PM  to 10:14PM EDT.

 

Planet Patterns & Cosmic Headlines for the next few weeks:

 

Summary:  The approach to the Full Moon can always bring our anxieties to the fore, and some challenging aspects before the FM and the day after could make for some emotional challenges.

 

Mercury in cardinal (initiatory), air (social) Libra squares (90deg.) Mars in cardinal, water (emotional) Cancer @ 5 deg. on 9/3/09. This aspect may very well present a challenge in communication, something to be negotiated but that has a sensitive emotional edge. An excessive concern for the feelings of others could create problems in discussing a necessary issue.

 

** Merc (Rx) alert! Mercury turns Retrograde @ 6 Libra on 9/7/09, and then turns Stationary Direct on 9/29/09 @ 21 Virgo. Mercury passed the first so-called “shadow point” 21 Virgo on 8/17/09, the degree at which it turns direct again after its retrogradation, and this is often called the “shoulder” part of the retrograde cycle, the outer cycle containing the shadow points but pre the exact retrograde time. The full retrograde cycle lasts until 10/14/09, when Mercury in direct motion again passes its retrograde (second shadow point) degree of 6 Libra.

 

*Currently Active Paradigm-Shift Patterns: 

 

*Jupiter in fixed air Aquarius conjoined (0deg.) Neptune/Aquarius for the second time @ 26 deg. on 7/10/09. Jupiter and Neptune are still in the throes of their second conjunction – still very close by degree. The first of three conjunctions (meeting in the same sign and at the same degree) between these two planets took place on 5/27/09, and the third and last takes place on 12/21/09. As noted in previous issues of PW, it is rare (and important) to have these two planets that meet by conjunction about every 12 years make this aspect three separate times in their single cycle. The last triple occurrence of this sort was in 1919-1920, marking the end of World War 1. The next time will be in 2047 –2048! This conjunction is meant to bring hope and to inspire us to a wider understanding of what the meaning is of the lives we have lived and wish to continue to live. Expect some amazing synchronicity to appear in your life. Be aware of all meetings with others, events and involvements, and what these may evoke in you, and if these meetings and events support the purpose and/or direction of your life.

 

* Part 2 of 5 – Saturn in mutable, earth Virgo opposite (180 deg. angle) Uranus in mutable, water Pisces took place on 2/5/09 @ 20 deg.  – Preview: Part 3 of 5 is exact on 9/15/09 @ 24degrees. The first four oppositions between these two planets takes place in the signs Virgo/Pisces, and the last one  in Aries/Libra in July of 2010. The first opposition took place on 11/4/08! It’s important to understand where this is taking place in your chart, the adjustments that are required of you, and how you will reconstruct habits in a specific area of your life. This is a pattern of adaptation and analysis of what works and what does not.  This challenging and often stressful aspect breaks things into their component parts in order to rebuild them on a more solid foundation. Individually your system may fracture, so that you can put it back together in a more workable fashion. Ask your astrologer to further clarify this important pattern and how it is operating in your life.