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Planet Weather for Weeks 2/26 & 3/4/12
NewsBits: Whitney Houston Dead in L.A. - Whitney Houston died on 2/11/12 @ 3:55PM PT, in Los Angeles, CA. She was born on 8/9/63 @ 8:55PM, Newark, NJ. (Time is from birth certificate.) The strongest aspect to her natal chart was transiting Pluto exactly square her Mars/Libra. That was the main “trigger,” but Neptune/Pisces in her H12 was moving toward an opposition to her Uranus/Virgo @ 4 deg. and transiting Jupiter/Taurus was exactly trine her Uranus. Pluto/Cap reached 8 degrees for the first time on 1/20/12 to square Whitney's Mars/Libra @ 8deg. - but it wasn't until 2/11/12 that the Moon/Libra got into the picture, highlighting and confirming the struggle to reinvent/understand herself that was probably going on. She’s struggled in recent years to make a comeback, which is also reflected in the transit of Pluto through her H10, the domain of career and priorities.
Transiting Saturn/Libra was moving through her H8, indicating that she was in a deeply transformative time in her life, making reassessments, already confirmed by transiting Pluto described above. Her Progressed Moon was in Capricorn, reflecting the powerful Saturn struggle going on in her H8 (Saturn rules the Capricorn Moon).
This bright Sun/Leo will be remembered for her amazing voice and hit songs and her long struggle with addictions. She had a Pisces Ascendant too, a very sensitive soul.
Adele Wins Big at Grammys. The sensational singer known only by her first name, Adele, won 6 Grammys on 2/12/12. She had trouble with her vocal cords in recent months and had a bit of a tricky operation (by a Boston doctor), which was fortunately successful and her voice was back as good as ever – complete with a smashing performance at the Grammys. Adele was born on 5/5/88 in Tottenham (N.London), England, time unknown. She's in her Jupiter/Taurus return cycle (Jupiter in the sky is in the same sign as her birth Jupiter. This happens every 12 years to everyone, beginning at birth.) Jupiter is also conjunct her SUN/Taurus - no wonder she’s on top of the world! Jupiter expands one’s life, brings fame or notoriety (Sun), opens all sorts of possibilities, and bestows favors when well placed in the chart. Her birth Mars/Aquarius squares her SUN/JU, all strong fixed signs contributing to that husky resonant voice and appearance.
Adele’s Mercury is 1 Gemini and transiting Neptune is approaching to square it. This could be a very creative time but also a time of confusion as she sorts out the many options and choices available to her at this time. She’s a hard-working girl (5 planets in Earth signs – three of them in Capricorn), and we certainly haven’t heard the last of her. She has much to achieve and she’s well on the way.
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SkyWatch for the Weeks of 2/26 & 3/4/12:
Moon phase for the week of 2/26: 2/29 -- The Moon enters Her First Quarter phase at 8:21 PM ET, at 10 degrees of Gemini. Skywatching events of the week: 2/26 -- The Waxing Crescent Moon makes a close pass by Jupiter, with their point of closest approach occurring just after sunset as viewed from the US East Coast. Moon and planet should be just far enough behind the Sun to be visible together low in the West as it darkens.
Moon phase for the week of 3/4: 3/8 -- The Moon reaches perfect Fullness at 4:39 AM ET, at 18 degrees of Virgo. This Full Moon is variously known in Native American and folk traditions as the Worm Moon, the Crow Moon, and the Sap Moon -- all harbingers of Spring. Skywatching events of the week: 3/7 -- The nearly Full Moon makes a close pass by Mars. As viewed from the US East Coast, their point of closest approach happens just after sunset as the two are rising together in the East, perfectly placed for watching. 3/10 -- The Moon makes a close pass by Saturn. Their point of closest approach also occurs just after sunset as viewed (in this case not viewed) from the East Coast when both are still below the eastern horizon. But they will rise together a couple of hours later, with Saturn leading the Moon up into the night sky.
Space News and Weather: Waterworld! The Hubble Space telescope, launched two decades ago, is still at it, taking breathtaking pictures and making equally breathtaking discoveries. One of Hubble’s latest discoveries is a planet known by the romantic name of GJ 1214b. This "exoplanet" (as planets orbiting other stars are called) is a so-called "super Earth", with a diameter roughly 2.7 times that of our human home-world. But what makes this newly discovered planet stand out is that it is covered entirely by water – and superheated water at that – as it orbits its primary, a red dwarf star a mere 40 light years from here, at a distance of only a bit over a million miles. Its surface temperature is over 400 degrees Fahrenheit but its heavy gravity keeps much of the water liquid. Talk about steam heat! 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 2/26/12 – Sunday, Friday (Mercury enters Aries) and Saturday are the most active days energetically – more Moon or planetary aspects for engagement with others, projects, and stimulation for producing results, or demands/challenges on your energy. On 2/26/12, the Moon is VOC/Aries from 7:52AM to 9:29AM EST – On 2/28/12, the Moon is VOC/Taurus from 2:46PM to 10:27PM EST – On 3/2/12, the Moon is VOC/Gemini from 8:14AM to 10:08AM EST.
Week of 3/4/12 – Sunday, Monday (Venus enters Taurus), Wednesday, and Friday are the most active days energetically – more Moon or planetary aspects for engagement with other or projects, and stimulation for producing results, or demands/challenges on your energy. On 3/4/12, the Moon is VOC/Cancer from 5:17PM until 6:18PM EST – On 3/6/12, the Moon is VOC/Leo from 8:27PM to 10:27PM EST – On 3/8/12, the Moon is VOC/Virgo from 4:39AM to 11:50PM EST – On 3/10/12, the Moon is VOC/Libra from 10:09PM to 12:24AM (next day, early!)
Quote of Note: “The trouble with life isn’t that there is no answer; it’s that there are so many answers.” – Ruth Benedict
Summary: In these next two weeks we are approaching a Full Moon in Virgo (3/8/12), which will accentuate and trigger the Mars retrograde in Virgo and all those many loose ends and repairs of various kinds that you’ve been trying to manage! And…we have Mercury shifting into the sign of its next Retrograde cycle (read on!)
Planet Patterns and Cosmic Headlines (Detail):
Mercury enters cardinal, fire Aries on 3/2/12. This is the sign of Mercury’s Retrograde (see details below).This Mercury has a fast and sometimes impatient communication mode. Since Aries is ruled by Mars, and Mars is retrograde (Rx), the desire to be speedy may backfire. Mars Rx is by nature a cycle of slowing down and not racing full-speed ahead. So, we have a contradiction and contradictions can bring friction and frustration. Do your best and keep revising your priority list. In fact, it will probably be revised for you! The good news is that in the midst of your many tasks, some brilliant insights will be realized just don’t implement them until Mercury and Mars go direct. Use this time for research, revisions and planning.
Venus enters fixed, earth Taurus on 3/5/12 until 4/3/12. This is a sensual Venus in one of its “home” signs and may serve to help us slow down as we wade through mounds of minutiae these days. Take a bubble bath or a walk in the woods, have a gourmet dinner with friends or a trip to the museum. In other words, get thyself into any number of relaxing and calming, pleasurable (to any one of your senses) environments! Be as generous as you can and you will feel the reward of giving, as well as receiving.
***Upcoming Mercury Retrograde Cycle! Mercury entered mutable, water Pisces on 2/13/12 and stays until 3/2/12 when Mercury enters cardinal, fire Aries. On 3/12/12 Mercury turns retrograde at 7 Aries. This means Mercury re-enters Pisces again, (as it slips backwards) on 3/23/12. Mercury turns Direct @ 23 Pisces on 4/4/12, and finally finishes its run in Pisces on 4/16/12. Mercury is in its pre-Rx shadow beginning 2/26/12, and its post-Rx shadow ends on 4/23/12. Whenever we have a retrograde planet, it extends the time it remains in one Zodiac sign and we are immersed in this energy, to learn its finer points. In Pisces, we may discover where we‘ve been blind to an aspect of ourselves, or in someone else. We learn to have compassion and understanding and not expect everything to be perfect or to be exactly the way we want it to be. The other side of that is recognizing what your boundaries are and being clear with others about your bottom line. Your feelings do matter; you need to first believe that and only then can you honor your own feelings and let others know how your feelings are affected.
Currently Active Paradigm-Shift Patterns -- Back Stories: Repeats and elaboration of the major current configurations affecting all of us.
Mars is Retrograde (Rx) in Virgo! Mars turned Rx in Virgo on 1/23/12 @ 23 deg. until 4/13/12. Mars entered mutable, earth Virgo on 11/10/11, and remains in Virgo (including its retrograde time) until 7/3/12! It’s significant that the first half of 2012 is dominated by a Virgoan theme at the same time that Neptune is entering Pisces for the next 14 years (see below). In short, the two energies are opposite. Virgo is about the details and Pisces about the unity of the whole. Both are necessary and need to be balanced. It’s easy to be overwhelmed when Mars Retro makes us aware of the many loose ends we’ve left hanging or the many tasks that seem to suddenly demand out attention.
Let this cycle teach you how to manage your stress level better. Pace yourself and stop when you find yourself obsessing – take a break then and switch to another activity, one that relaxes you. Virgo is one of the signs that govern health, as in the positive functioning of the body, as well as your schedule. Do you have play time and friend time built into your schedule, as well as a good diet, regular exercise and enough sleep? Virgo is the delicate system or mechanism (body/mind/spirit) that allows us to function well. Make sure you maintain it regularly so that it can do its job well.
Neptune re-enters mutable, water Pisces on 2/3/12 for the next 14 years until 3/31/25. It’s time to sing a different tune. Neptune in the very last sign of the Zodiac requires nuance and subtlety for one thing and a lot of faith for another. In fact you may be tested on your faith. Neptune is sticky and tricky (the title of one of my old lectures on Neptune). It is the search for meaning even in the midst of things dissolving around you and events that seem inexplicable. Neptune is the power of the water; it takes everything in and brings it back in another form entirely. It breaches all barriers and so on a mundane level we may find out secrets about people, places and things that have long been hidden.
Neptune is the intoxication with the ideal and all that takes us beyond the harshness of mundane life. And that’s why it’s also associated with addictions. There’s a yearning in Neptune for beauty and union with tastes and glimpses of the divine, with magic, with grace, forgiveness and compassion. This renewed emphasis on the urge to transcend will likely bring a surge of new music, film, and a renaissance in all other art forms.
Saturn turns Stationary Retrograde @ 29 Libra on 2/7/12 until 6/25/12. Re-evaluate your position and your relationships. Saturn has been traveling in the sign of the scales (balance) for about 2 years and it will leave in October 2012. But before it does that it has one more retrograde cycle. Along with Mars also retrograde, things slow down but also tend to break down. So, the opportunity is to rebuild the foundation step by step. First though, evaluate and remind yourself of the criteria you are using to make your plans. It’s possible you’ll need to revise and reassess them. Relationships are still in the crosshairs of scrutiny with Saturn/Libra. Some have broken down and new ones have formed. Typically imbalances in a range or arena create the friction in relationship and the balance of give and take is tipped. Sometimes the scales cannot rebalance themselves but at other times, when both parties have the will and commitment, the relationship is renewed and becomes even stronger.
Saturn in Libra addresses the questions of balance, fairness, relationships, negotiations, and compromise. With Saturn there is always evaluation, some testing of standards met or not, and have we achieved what we set out to do in certain areas of our life? If we feel we are out of balance, then we will want to rebalance, or renegotiate the contracts we’ve made. Saturn will be backtracking now, to refine those imbalances and to test the rebalancing that you’ve begun. What is it exactly that makes for harmony and contentment in your life? All Libras, Aries, Cancers and Capricorns are feeling this testing the most.
Saturn entered cardinal, air Libra on 10/29/09. The full cycle lasts until 10/6/12. This is a 2.5-year Saturn-sign cycle. Saturn is exalted in Libra. This so-called “essential dignity” means there’s more of a commitment to promote cooperation and harmony among equals. Or, we can say, that is the primary striving in this combination. The collective will be more focused on what is fair and equitable and what is not. Generally, the message is to find the imbalances and rebalance as needed. Where are you giving your commitment and attention? Are the returns you receive what you really want? If not, then adjust those commitments and relationships for greater equality and fairness. Saturn in Libra also asks – what matters and what is valuable? When there is real value, it is easier to make a commitment for a longer time and with greater attention and intention. All major relationships and, in particular, those with Libra/Aries Sun, Moon, or Ascendant, will be put to a greater test. Saturn in a cardinal sign is more proactive than in other signs, and you may find that you seek order from recent chaos and productivity from prior stress and mess.
Jupiter Stationary Direct @ 0Taurus on 12/25/11, Christmas Day! Whatever good was held back or delayed will now move toward you, that is – if it was already heading in your direction to begin with! Ask your astrologer to map this out for you. A planet changing direction is always a big event, and with Jupiter, the biggest planet in our Solar system, expect magnification of events – maybe even exaggeration, and also some surprises. Jupiter/Taurus is generous with whatever resources it has and is patient and enduring. Jupiter entered fixed, earth Taurus on 6/4/11 and stays until 6/12/12. Jupiter stays in Taurus without moving back into the previous sign, even when it turns retrograde on 8/30/11(it remains in Taurus), which only happens about every three Jupiter cycles (3 years)! Most of the time when Jupiter turns retrograde in any sign, it moves back into the sign before and then its retrograde cycle spans the two signs. We might speculate that this can grant us greater relaxation and stability from the fast and furious and sudden changes that we’ve all witnessed since the beginning of this year, at least, while Jupiter was in fiery Aries. Stable and practical with a certain amount of sweetness, abundance, or favor is the message of this giving Jupiter in a Venus-ruled sign. There are possibilities, if we are willing to look for them and allow them.
Neptune/Aquarius turned Stationary Direct on 11/9/11 until 6/5/12! The scandals leaked out – Herman Cain’s sexual harassment skeletons and child rape abuses at Penn State University. With this surge forward again, Neptune soon leaves the sign Aquarius not to return for another 164 years! Neptune is now moving steadily toward Pisces, where it Stationed @ 0deg. on 6/3/11 and sat at 0 degrees between 4/4-8/5/11. On 2/3/12, Neptune returns to 0 deg. Pisces and will then continue its journey through Pisces for the next 14 years, until 3/31/25. We can only imagine what changes in the culture and our sensibilities this will bring. There is a grand focus on the environment and greater sensitivity within the web-like network that binds us closer together than ever before. New visionaries will emerge, as well as new ways to believe and questions of what to believe. The way in which each one of us is connected to and responsible for every other living being on this planet will become increasingly and utterly apparent.
Neptune is a dissolving energy and expresses the power of the water! Neptunian themes include: paranormal experiences, illumination about some life themes or experiences, and secrets leaking out, or even some funky illness. Neptune energies can also manifest as melancholy as we review dreams that may not have materialized, make necessary adjustments, all the while maintaining our faith in life, spirit and the meaning of it all.
With Neptune’s foray into Pisces, we have the third outer planet making a sign change since January 2008, setting in motion a series of conditions and events that have global long-term effects. Neptune is entering the modern rulership of its own sign Pisces and expresses itself quite naturally here according to its intrinsic nature. We can expect the need for greater sensitivity and environmental protections, as the harm we have done to the planet becomes more obvious. We may witness the formation of new religious groups and a reformation of existing religion as we know it. Secrets may be exposed and more leaks of information that some people may not wish to be revealed. On the positive side, new artistic accomplishments will flower in all fields, especially music, but all across the artistic spectrum. In essence it is a cultural call for greater refinement and attunement to what we often take for granted or fail to notice.
Neptune was discovered in 1846, and entered Pisces on 4/26/1847 through 1861. Oddly enough, Uranus was also in Aries (although farther along in the sign) when Neptune entered Pisces for the first time (since its discovery). This is only the second time, after Neptune came into our consciousness awareness, that Neptune is transiting Pisces! Both Neptune and Pisces are tricky. They operate on a completely different level. Pisces is known for its hyper-sensitivity, compassion, diffusiveness, spirituality, dream-like imagination, second-sight, idealism, patronage of the arts, and the ability to dissolve barriers of all kinds for greater unity. Negative manifestation includes: dissipation, neglect, addictions, deception, drugs, theft, scandals, and secrets. A few highlights of Neptune’s last transit through Pisces include: new social movements, such as Marxism, emancipation of slaves, the start of the US Civil War, the California Gold Rush, the Romantic movement in music, and transcendentalism.
We had four months of Neptune in Pisces in 2011, which we have not experienced for 166 years! As we begin to integrate with this complex novel energy infusion, you may notice a greater sensitivity or subtlety. Neptune dissolves barriers and that is one of the reasons a positive Neptunian response often allows greater compassion for human error and human frailty. Neptune deals with the unseen and the unnoticed and often accounts for spiritual breakthroughs and even paranormal experiences. I believe that this transit of Neptune through Pisces will loosen the boundaries between the material realm and the spiritual or energetic realms. Many of us will experience more than can be easily explained through the measurable functions of science. This can be a time of high magic but also the stripping away of illusions and deceptions and unless one has a strong inner core, the disillusionment we find may destabilize us. Practice faith in the joy of being alive and the true mysticism of that fact alone, no matter what your religious beliefs may be. Neptune is magical and a component of magic is addiction, as we seek to recreate the transcendence of blissful states that allow us to escape the harsher realities of everyday life.
Pluto turned Stationary Direct @ 4 Capricorn on 9/16/11 until 4/11/12. Anytime an outer planet slows down, stops, and reverses direction, its characteristic energy is amplified. Pluto is our slowest moving planet [Yes] and for several years now it has been processing the growing discontent with systems that have failed us and failed to provide the kind of security society expected. We’ve experienced various breakdowns collectively and personally yielding quite a bit of instability and insecurity. This station could very well deal with financial issues and the pragmatic concerns of unemployment, but more directly where the money is, who is holding it, and why lending isn’t forthcoming. It is quite possible that a bottleneck will open and more money will flow to fuel jobs and fund business. At least these seem to be the issues surrounding this Pluto Station. (The gold bubble and Germany’s bailout in the Euro crisis with defaulting Greece.)
Uranus re-entered Aries on 3/11/11, and remains there until May 2018. This is the biggest news of March and beyond, and heralds a new upward spiral in social and cultural evolution. In the summer of 2010, Uranus teased us by parking itself and remaining only at 0deg. Aries (the powerful degree of the Spring Equinox) from 5/27-8/13/10. Now it’s fully engaged. Any planet in the first sign of the Zodiac wants to start a fire, begin something new, innovate, and create or reinvent something in its own image. This combination can certainly be aggressive, bold, courageous, willful, and because of the influence of Uranus, unexpected and explosive. Most of the previous text was written well before the popular uprisings (conflagrations) in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and other parts of the Middle East. We are seeing the effects of individuals asserting themselves in their striving for personal freedoms that they believe are their birthright. Repressive regimes will no longer be tolerated. Aries represents the new and renewal – as it emerges from the dreams of the previous sign, Pisces. It burns with the fire of justice and courage to be free at any cost.