Scorpio New Moon 2024: Minor Planet Report

Basic details and main features

Scorpio New Moon, 1st November 2024, 12:47 UTC

Let's face it: the forthcoming U.S. presidential election is – to put it mildly – causing some tension. This lunation chart reflects the uncertainty and unease many of us are feeling, in large part thanks to a configuration between Mars, Pluto and Juno, known as a T-square, in the often fraught final (anaretic) degrees of Cancer, Capricorn and Libra respectively. It seems to me this aspect pattern represents in vivid colour our collective sense of urgency, our anxiety for it all to be over with, and our dread of the worst case scenario.

I will hazard one prediction. I think the regressive side of this particular fence is finally running out of footholds in society writ large, and a defeat at the polls will signal its downfall amid the ascent of a kinder, more egalitarian culture. The very close sextile between Jupiter (which might naturally stand for the Harris-Walz team, being the god of joy) and Chiron suggests potential for deep healing.

As a Brit, I recognise that I'm on the sidelines here and can have no idea what it's like actually on the ground. I feel for anyone who is scared, under threat or already hurt by the Christofascist horror show. But in case it helps: the trine between Mercury and Mars suggests a release valve for anyone feeling desperate or forlorn: namely, take courage, be clear and speak your truth.

I am convinced that good will prevail; it's just a question of when. I think there's at least a fighting chance for a victory on Tuesday. Much love to you all.

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Libra New Moon 2024/Eclipse: Minor Planet Report

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Libra New Moon/Annular Solar Eclipse, Wednesday 2nd October 2024 at 18:49 UTC, 10+ Libra

With the equinox now several days behind us, we reach the second eclipse of the current pair, which takes place alongside a configuration involving nearby Mercury, plus Ceres and Uranus. If recent weeks have been characterised by delays and frustrations, this event may provide a much-needed dynamic boost. Even if we have to give the starting push, once the astrological momentum takes over, we could find ourselves covering a significant distance in a markedly short time. Be sure to keep both hands on the wheel.

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Some minor planets involved

Aspecting New Moon (conjunction or opposition)

• (5) Astraea – Large S-type bright main-belt asteroid, named for the virgin goddess of justice, innocence, purity and precision. Not to be confused with Asteria, the goddess of the stars, in myth she became the constellation Virgo, and her scales Libra; she was also the last of the gods to reside among humans, and may return some day, bringing with her a second Golden Age. Astrologically, this body might represent balance, justice, innocence, idealism, vision and what is seen^[1], fair trade^[2], persistence, renaissance^[3], difficulty letting go and blocked closure^[4].
• (57) Mnemosyne – S-type asteroid with orbital period close to a 2:1 commensurability with Jupiter. Greek Titan goddess of memory and mother of the nine Muses by Zeus. May signify recall^[5], remembrance^[6] and, perhaps, their roles in creative work and transcendence.
• (260) Huberta – Cybele group member and outer main belt asteroid rich in carbon; identified with St. Hubert of Liège (c.656-727), who established ethical rules on hunting that are still followed to this day. He is patron of archers, trappers, hunting, dogs and forest workers; mathematicians; metal workers and smelters. Correspondences are likely to signify conservation, ethics, longstanding changes and effects, gradual development and/or careful testing, and new beginnings.

Lunar Eclipse post on Substack

Just a quick heads up: there's a new post on my Substack. Short and sweet. You can find it here.

Happy eclipse season,
Theano

Virgo New Moon 2024: Minor Planet Report

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Virgo New Moon, 3rd September 2024, 01:55 UTC, 11+ Virgo

With Mercury safely back in direct motion, Tuesday's New Moon might feel like a convenient springboard from which to take a huge leap back into action. That said, it's probably worth proceeding with unusual care. Accompanying the lunation is an incredibly tight Mars-Neptune square. This is one of the more delicate configurations (to put it, well, delicately).

Proactive yet impatient and sometimes rash (and, in Gemini, highly strung), Mars likes to push ahead without necessarily understanding the circumstances in which it moves. Neptune, meanwhile, loves to spread a fog over what it influences and sow confusion – making rapid action tricky, and possibly liable to mishaps. To complicate matters still further, Pluto has now retrograded back into Capricorn for a brief farewell visit, before finally settling into Aquarius in mid-November.

All this indicates caution and attention to detail as the most prudent course; in addition, ensuring that any loose ends are firmly secured. As the next lunation will bring us into eclipse season, soon enough we could well find matters developing at speed, without any additional propulsion required; now is the moment for checking the seatbelts.

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Capricorn Full Moon July 2024: Minor Planet Report

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Full Moon in Capricorn (Moon opposite Sun), 21st July 2024 at 10:17 UTC, 29+ Capricorn/Cancer

Here we are with the second of two Capricorn Full Moons, in the final (anaretic) degree of the respective signs, with the Moon also sextile Neptune at the end of Pisces. The energy in this area can feel unsettling and somewhat volatile, as we are in the process of shifting from one sign to the next. That said, it can be useful for tying up loose ends, and bringing matters to a satisfactory conclusion. If Neptune makes you feel rather off-balance or confused, take as much time as you need to find and/or ground yourself. The important things in life are rarely instantaneous.

One other configuration stands out in this chart: a Finger of the World (see this page for an in-depth discussion of this and other aspect patterns) between Mercury, Uranus and Ceres. This aspect pattern contrasts with the Finger of God, or Yod, in that the latter indicates a sense of fatedness or unavoidable events, whereas the former relates to what we can do for ourselves. Potentially, the combination of these planets is suggestive of how we can use our minds, intellect and/or inventive means to nourish and nurture our wellbeing.

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Capricorn Full Moon June 2024: Minor Planet Report

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Capricorn Full Moon (Moon opposite Sun), 22nd June 2024, 01:07:40 UTC, 1+ Capricorn-1+ Cancer. (Note: this is the first of two Full Moons in Capricorn this year; the second will be on 21st July, in the final degrees of the respective signs.)
Lunation takes place close to cardinal points; Sun conjunct the centaur (8405) Asbolus within 3', and other minors

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Some minor planets involved

Conjunct Sun

• (127) Johanna – Large main-belt asteroid named for Jeanne d'Arc, the young Frenchwoman who became a national hero defending her country against the English. The asteroid shares its discovery degree with Chiron, and its correspondences involve numerous similarly honourable and pivotal figures, apparently serving to associate it more closely to its namesake.
• (968) Petunia – Main-belt asteroid named after the flower genus, which is related to tobacco, tomatoes and chilli peppers, among others. These and other connections are suggestive of a Martial or combative aspect; there is also a fertility element expressed through the discovery degree.
• (8405) Asbolus – Centaur crossing the orbits of Saturn and Uranus; the mythical creature was a seer who predicted the critical battle with the Lapiths but, once intoxicated by the smell of Herakles' wine, also led the other centaurs towards it and thus helped cause the fight. The name Asbolos means 'sooty' or 'carbon dust'. Various sources^[1] offer indications including: intuition, psychic ability, seriousness, intensity, mysteries, difficulty receiving compliments or advice, pessimism, heaviness, solidity and consistency.
• (19521) Chaos – Kuiper belt object, possibly a dwarf planet, named for the Greek concept of the primordial void. Themes may include unlimited potential^[2], anarchy, disarray^[3], "spiritual laws that support personal freedom and free will"^[4], Robin Hood style figures^[5], orderliness amid confusion, and mellowness^[6].

Gemini New Moon 2024: Minor Planet Report

Basic details and main features

Gemini New Moon (Moon conjunct Sun), 6th June 2024 at 12:37:31 UTC, 16+ Gemini
Venus is conjunct the New Moon at 16+ Gemini
New Moon is sesquiquadrate Pluto at 1+ Aquarius

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Some minor planets involved

Conjunct Moon and Sun

• (29) Amphitrite – Large, stony asteroid named for the Greek sea goddess and wife of Poseidon; when she at first refused his advances he sent the dolphin god Delphin as his messenger, who persuaded her to agree to the marriage. Waves/being washed away^[1], "tides of fate and fortune"^[2] or "the evaluation phase of a relationship"^[3] – in addition, the discovery degree Sabian draws attention to the life-giving property of water, possibly both to quench thirst and as the necessary ingredient for most living things to survive and procreate.
• (227) Philosophia – Named for the subject of study. May relate simply to philosophy itself, or (broadly) spiritual practices^[4]; the Sabian and other associations imply the act of cognitive exploration as a form of preparatory skill or foresight, as well as the importance of joy to our existence.
• (413) Edburga – Exact name origin is unknown, but there were a number of Saxon women by this name alive between the 7th and 10th centuries, some of whom became saints^[5]. Two themes stand out from the correspondences: the Sabian speaks of the will and its role in shaping character; the closest resonance match is with (14) Irene, one of the Horai, goddess of peace and the season of spring, who is also connected to abundance. Potentially the reconciliation of these lies in making the best of what one is given.
• (639) Latona – Roman name for Leto, the mother of Artemis and Apollo; member of the Eos family of asteroids in the outer main belt. Associations are indicative of the aura of nobility, blessedness and dignity characteristic of Leto in myth. The discovery Sabian likewise speaks of beatitude. Her very nature seems to command respect and reverence.

Sagittarius Full Moon 2024: Minor Planet Report

Basic details and main features

Sagittarius Full Moon (Moon opposite Sun), 23rd May 2024 at 13:53 UTC, 2+ Sagittarius-2+ Gemini
Moon is sextile Pluto at 2+ Aquarius
Venus-Jupiter conjunction at 29+ Taurus sextile Neptune at 29+ Pisces

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Some minor planets involved

Conjunct Sun

• (28) Bellona – Roman war goddess, said to be sister or wife of Mars, whose temple was the official decision-making centre in regards to war. Fight or flight/instinctive reaction and also safe practices^[1].
• (81) Terpsichore – Greek muse of dance. Body image; exercise; dance; agility^[2]; body movement as communication^[3].
• (204) Kallisto – Greek nymph, follower of Artemis beguiled by Zeus, to whom she bore her son Arcas. After her pregnancy was discovered, Hera transformed her into a bear. She was eventually set among the stars as Ursa Major. Through Arcas, she was the mother of the Arcadians. Sabian of discovery degree 2+ Taurus refers to fecundity and is shared with, among others, Siwa (fertility goddess) and Petunia (named for a genus of flower).
• (420) Bertholda – named for a historical Duke of Carinthia, Berthold II (c. 1000-6 November 1078). Considered a foreign ruler, he was never really accepted by his nobles and faced continual battles for his throne. Sabian of discovery degree refers to intelligence as a protection against "storms and trials".

Through the Fire

We're in for quite the interesting April, astrologically speaking. Mercury is now retrograde, in which state it will remain for another three weeks from today. On Monday, we get the total solar edition of the latest eclipse cycle; while the early morning of 21st April (UT) will see the conjunction of Jupiter and Uranus in Taurus.

There's a lot to unpack in all of this, and a variety of angles from which one might examine the meaning. Monday's New Moon, to take one example, will be precisely (as in, to the arc minute) conjunct Chiron. This is unusual enough in itself to be worthy of extensive comment.*

Chiron is a relatively new discovery, spotted in 1977. Its approximately 50-year orbit is highly eccentric, unlike those of the major planets. It spends several years travelling through some signs, and zips through others within months. As an astrological phenomenon, it adds a whole layer of complexity to signification of human growth, representing a deeply psychological and emotional element of reaction to hurt, healing and transcendence.

Pisces New Moon: Keeping the Dream Alive

Tomorrow's New Moon in Pisces is surrounded by a mass of celestial points, which seems reminiscent of a crowd huddled together, waiting - for change, for a message, for the next shoe to drop, etc. In some circumstances, that is indeed all one can do, and we are often primed to consider the great acts that forge future epochs as beyond our reach.

Yet in among this large astrological grouping are markers* that indicate very lucidly our agency and power, and our ability to wield them - especially if we work together.

Intermission

Hi everyone

I'm taking what I hope will be a brief hiatus for this lunation, while I concentrate on healing from a rough few days. Meanwhile, here are Amanda Painter's horoscopes, which, as usual, are spot on.

Much love,
Theano

A Jovial Full Moon

Firstly, I apologise for the brevity of this post and the absence of horoscopes. I hope the below will at least be of some utility.

Today's Full Moon has, as my good friend Amanda pointed out, proved something of a callback to 2023. It took place at 5+ degrees Leo and Aquarius, squaring Jupiter (currently at 6+ degrees Taurus) along with the 5+ Taurus degree, in which Mercury and Jupiter both stationed direct last year. The Full Moon of late October 2023 also occurred at 5+ Taurus-Scorpio. All this has invested that one small part of the zodiac with a lot of significance.