Planet Weather for the Week of June 18, 2006

                                                                                                                                  

SkyWatch – Moon phase of the week: 6/18 -- The Moon enters her Last Quarter phase at 10:08 AM EDT, at 27 degrees of Pisces. Last Quarter Moons are visible both night and day, from roughly midnight until noon, so look for this phase change as the Moon is setting low in the southwest sky. Skywatching events of the week: 6/20 -- Mercury reaches what is called its Greatest Eastern Elongation about 4:00 PM EDT, setting about 25 degrees behind the Sun. Thus this is the best time to look for Mercury in the western evening sky just after sunset. Related sky factoid of the week: True to his archetypal character as messenger of the gods, Mercury is never easy to spot, and after a few days rapidly descends into the glow of the setting Sun. He disappears altogether by the end of the month, an event which, in astrology, is known as being "under the Sun's beams," a condition that supposedly weakens a planet's influence in a chart. 6/21 -- The Sun reaches its northernmost point in the sky, a.k.a. the June Solstice, at 8:26 AM EDT, marking the "official" start of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere and Winter in the Southern Hemisphere. (Hopefully, skywatchers can observe lots of sunshine!) Space News of the Week: NASA has tentatively scheduled the launch of the Space Shuttle Discovery for July 1. This is only the second Shuttle launch following the Columbia disaster in early 2003. NASA is being especially cautious in ensuring that there will not be a repeat of large chunks of insulating foam falling off the Shuttle's huge external tank and hitting the orbiter. The Shuttle will rendezvous with the International Space Station and remain in orbit for a bit over a week.

 Go out! Look up!

 

This is a busy planetary week marked by many strong aspects, sign changes and a powerful Uranus retrograde station!

 

Mars in fiery Leo conjuncts (0deg.) Saturn/Leo @ 8 deg. on Sunday, June 18, 2006 @ 2:03AM EDT. One facet of this aspect confronts the hubris, arrogance, and pride of Leo – it brings the ego down to reality if it has strayed from its course. Another facet is a commitment to one’s path via one’s identity. In other words, does your choice have integrity – is it something you can stand behind? So, the aspect is a coming-to-terms and a critique – a viability check and a decidedly sobering influence. Leaders are asked to defend their positions and their decisions. This is a judgment call, as well as a commitment to focus on a course of action.

Mars/Leo squares (90deg.) Jupiter Rx in watery Scorpio @ 9 deg. on Monday, June 19, 2006 @ 3:41AM EDT. After the critical Saturn’s meeting with Mars, Jupiter grants a bit of leeway. This is much like politics – statements of certainty are expressed and then, based on reviews, spin-control takes over; or else Jupiter brings opportunities to test the resolve of the commitment made with Saturn, or eases the strain and the sense of hyper-responsibility that Saturn implies. One must we wary of this aspect in some sense, so as not to undo the promises made with Saturn, unless there is good reason. The problem is that Jupiter can always find justification. The key is wisdom and good judgment.

 

Uranus in watery Pisces makes a Station Retrograde @ 14 Pisces on Monday, June 19, 2006 @ 3:40AM EDT until 11/20/06. Uranus, the Awakener, now retraces its path from 14 Pisces to 11 Pisces until late Fall. The quixotic position of Uranus in Pisces is a mystery for one’s sense of truth. We are asked to acknowledge compassionate truths and not just logical truths, and this process can create a good bit of confusion in the way we consider situations. We may be asked to bend the truth in order to obey a higher truth or recognize how ego has slipped into our belief in the truths we’ve held sacred; or else, even more disturbing, we may find that truths we’ve adhered to for years are disintegrating as we experience our lives in action and in reality. If you’ve come across some of these conundrums recently and can’t find clear answers, you are not alone in being confused. Uranus will now bring further information as it retrogrades over the last four degrees, giving you increased opportunity to look into your soul for guidance and perhaps discover a more spiritual and compassionate perspective. Pisces more than any other sign, is a mirror, expressing outwardly what the soul needs to experience. Having regular conversations with your soul will shift your sense of reality, no doubt.

 

The Summer Solstice! On Wednesday, June 21, 2006 @ 8:26AM, the Sun enters Cancer and the Summer season begins astrologically, as well as astronomically. The Sun is at its highest point North overhead in declination, bringing warmth and heat to the Northern Hemisphere and heralding winter in the Southern hemisphere. The cardinal points of the zodiac are potent energetic release and action points. In Cancer, we are experiencing the relaxation that water energy brings, an invitation to flow with what is – particularly with what we cannot change. At the same time there is a need to harness apathy or non-action in the lethargic component that is also contained in Cancer.  Half of the axis of protection and basic needs, along with its opposite sign, Capricorn, Cancer is clannish and aware of community dynamics whether in the most intimate community of a couple, a family, the neighborhood, or the family of man. Cancer can always identify with similar human feelings no matter where in the world they express themselves or what the status of the human being experiencing them is.

 

Jupiter Rx in watery Scorpio squares Saturn/Leo @ 9 deg. on Thursday, June 22, 2006 @ 2:45PM EDT. Jupiter expands and Saturn contracts to put it in very simple terms, and when these two meet by square, there is a tug of opposites. Jupiter/Scorpio will upset the ruling order of Saturn/Leo. Something comes to an organic or political end via Jupiter/Scorpio. Something wants to stay in the status quo (Saturn/Leo) while another energy (Jupiter/Scorpio) seeks to transform and morph the system into something else more viable. It’s a life and death struggle. The deeper psychological implications that have created the system will reach their natural conclusion based on power and support or lack of the same.

 

Venus enters airy Gemini on Friday, June 23, 2006 @ 8:31PM EDT until 7/18/06. Venus entering Gemini is the last planetary shift in a week of strong happenings. This Venus is light and sociable, loquacious and friendly. It can be glib, witty, or shallow, depending on the person using the energy! It certainly opens up the avenues of communication, especially if there’s something that has needed to be addressed.

 

News Bits: Soldier Hostage in Iraq? Reportedly, two soldiers were taken hostage by masked guerillas after a roadside attack that killed one of their comrades. This appears to be a prelude to the intense energies of this coming week, including the Mars/Saturn conjunction Sunday 6/18/06, which can be harsh, and the Uranus station retrograde on 6/19/06 which typically brings sudden surprises and upsets – and Uranus is certainly know for its anarchistic streak.

 

The Months ahead! – A short preview of some major planetary events in the months to come. Most of July hosts our next Mercury retrograde (7/4-7/28/06) in early Leo, retrograding back into Cancer. The issues are those of play, creativity, and family or community responsibilities and concerns. Jupiter goes direct @ 8 Scorpio, and then rapidly moves through the course of the sign. Mars moves into Virgo on 7/22/06, and we are focused more on our work-ethic and whether we are getting the necessary repairs done on our lives! In August, all three of the outermost planets remain retrograde as we process the shocking new emotional insights of Uranus/Pisces, the lightening advance of technology with Neptune/Aquarius, and the relentless spin of various beliefs and faiths of Pluto/Sagittarius.  Pluto goes direct on 9/4/06, at 24 degrees, and we are jolted to the core by some subterranean revelation. Mars enters the diplomatic sign of Libra on 9/8/06, just a day after a powerful Lunar Eclipse @ 15 Pisces, igniting the Uranus/Pisces station degree on 6/19/06. Those who have far-sight, intuition or insight will find this a time when the veils are lifted and secrets of the soul and the mysteries (as well as the wisdom) of life and living are more readily available – and of course, the meaning of it all!