Planet Weather for the Week of April 30, 2006

                                                                                                                                  

SkyWatch – Moon phase of the week: 5/5 -- The Moon enters her First Quarter phase at 1:13 AM EDT, at 14 degrees of Leo. From some locations skywatchers can catch this event low in the west just before moonset. (First Quarter Moons sleep in, lazily rising around noon and setting around midnight, give or take an hour or so.) Skywatching events of the week: 5/4 -- Jupiter reaches a position in the sky exactly opposite the Sun at around 11 AM EDT. Phase-wise, this is the equivalent of a "Full Jupiter" and means that, on the following night, the king of planets (a so-called "gas giant") will shine the brightest he ever does, and will rise roughly when the Sun sets and set when the Sun rises. Space news of the week: The Hubble Space Telescope is providing astronomers with amazing views of comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3. This celestial object is shedding chunks of itself as it streaks along past the Earth. Recent Hubble images have uncovered many more fragments than ground-based observers have reported. The Hubble photographs of the comet are thus providing an unprecedented opportunity to study the demise of a comet nucleus. (This is not a comet that is visible to unaided observers, which may actually be a good thing, since its name does not exactly come trippingly off the tongue!)

Go out! Look up!

 

Mercury entered Aries on Sunday, April 16, 2006 @ 8:20AM EDT and remains until 5/5/06. Mercury makes a powerful trine (120deg.) to Pluto @ 26 Sagittarius, shortly before it leaves Aries. Some important and potent pieces of information are sure to sink in, or are stirred-up, on kinesthetic and deeply instinctual levels. Thought processes and conversations lean toward the use/abuse of power, empowerment, politics, and deep feelings, desire and emotions are generated and expressed. Use this trine to understand how you embody and express your own desires and potential.  Because this combination stimulates gut instincts, information or conversation often causes emotional reactiveness or provocation. At the same time, we may reach a greater understanding of human psychology and the methods we use to survive.

 

Mercury enters Taurus on Friday, May 5, 2006 @ 4:28AM EDT and remains until 5/19/06. This earthy Mercury is slower and more deliberate than the fiery Aries - Mercury time we just completed. This Mercury wants productivity but not at the expense of comfort or consideration – keep that in mind when communicating with others or asking for something. Mercury squares (90deg.) Saturn/Leo on Sunday, May 7, 2006, bringing about potential conflict between differing values and possibly stubborn pride issues. If you have to stand your ground, be sure the battle is really worth it. Mercury opposes Jupiter/Scorpio on 6/11/06, and you are more likely to go overboard and spill the beans (so to speak) or converse with no holds barred. This is positive or negative depending on the consequences or results you are seeking. Mercury squares Neptune/Aquarius on 6/15/06 and this contact can make you dreamy, forgetful, inspired, dejected, deluded, confused, spiritually aware or - all of the above!

 

The Sun entered Taurus on April 20, 2006 @ 1:26AM EDT. The Sun sextiles (60deg.) Uranus/Pisces and opposes (180 deg.) Jupiter @ 14 Scorpio, both within hours of the same day – Thursday, May 4, 2006. The Sun describes in part how you shine or how and where you want to express your shine and vitality and joie de vivre! With the dual impetus of Uranus and Jupiter, there’s an anything-goes attitude and you are likely to take a chance and even go to extremes. If you’ve been holding back, this is a boon for you – and if you are typically comfortable taking risks, this may encourage you to go too far. In either case, you are also sure to get a huge dose of the truth about something vital in your life!

 

Venus enters Aries on Wednesday, May3, 2006 @ 6:25AM EDT. Venus is in detriment (does not function according to its basic nature) in Aries, and this means that relationships, cooperation, and negotiation have a more aggressive or assertive quality to them. This need not be negative – instead it can simply be more direct or up-front and refreshingly spirited. Then again, what is important with this placement is to remember the delivery of the communication, and the effect it has on the one with whom you are interacting.

 

News Bits: The Oil Crisis! Astrologically, this current oil crisis is a harbinger of what is to come when Pluto enters Capricorn for the first time in January 2008. Pluto in Capricorn is a huge event worldwide, indicating the advent of various global crises and the erosion of structures that have outlived their usefulness – which includes resources (like oil) that we have taken for granted. It’s not like we didn’t have fair warning that our oil resources were rapidly reaching “peak oil” (where half of all known resources have already been exploited) and even being squandered as if there was no tomorrow! With Pluto entering Capricorn, tomorrow is here! The dinosaur of the old ways will not die willingly or easily – that is, in part the huge corporate interests that have kept old and outmoded systems in place. Pluto’s transit of Capricorn will last through January 2024! Ever the great reality checker, the message of Pluto/Capricorn is: does it stand the test of time, does it have integrity, and is it a habit or pattern that supports or constricts? Of course, I’m oversimplifying the complexity of this 16-year passage of Pluto, but we’ve got start somewhere. We’ll have plenty of time to analyze this major shift in human consciousness as time wears on. For the United States, it marks a Pluto return – that is, Pluto in Capricorn is the same position the U.S. was born with, since it takes Pluto approximately 248 years to pass through all twelve signs. What makes things acute at the moment is Mars in Cancer, activating the USA Sun, Venus, Jupiter and Mercury in Cancer and opposing the USA Pluto. Mars transits Cancer every few years and each time it points to something that the US needs to address that threatens its security and the basic comforts of its citizens. Since this transit is so close to Pluto’s entry into Capricorn, it signals a more serious issue that not only the US but the rest of the International community will have to face over the next 16 years – diminishing resources. Any Saturn/Pluto combination (which is Pluto/Capricorn)   is a crisis in consciousness, and for the U.S. it’s the basic structure and foundation of how the U.S. has operated in the world since it was born. The next US President will have the distinct honor of bringing us into the beginning of this incredible time in US history – a true revolt of standards, institutions, commerce, finances, and principles that have guided this country since its inception.