SuperMoon Alert

From SPACE.com:

"Skywatchers take note: The biggest full moon of the year is due to arrive this weekend.

The moon will officially become full Saturday (May 5) at 11:35 p.m. EDT. And because this month's full moon coincides with the moon's perigee — its closest approach to Earth — it will also be the year's biggest.

The moon will swing in 221,802 miles (356,955 kilometers) from our planet, offering skywatchers a spectacular view of an extra-big, extra-bright moon, nicknamed a supermoon.

And not only does the moon's perigee coincide with full moon this month, but this perigee will be the nearest to Earth of any this year, as the distance of the moon's close approach varies by about 3 percent, according to meteorologist Joe Rao, SPACE.com's skywatching columnist. This happens because the moon's orbit is not perfectly circular."

Aurora over Raufarhofn

From Images 108

It was all lined up even without the colorful aurora exploding overhead. If you follow the apex line of the recently deployed monuments of Arctic Henge in Raufarhöfn in northern Iceland from this vantage point, you will see that they point due north. A good way to tell is to follow their apex line to the line connecting the end stars of the Big Dipper, Merak and Dubhe, toward Polaris, the bright star near the north spin axis of the Earth projected onto the sky. By design, from this vantage point, this same apex line will also point directly at the midnight sun at its highest point in the sky just during the summer solstice of Earth's northern hemisphere. In other words, the Sun will not set at Arctic Henge during the summer solstice in late June, and at its highest point in the sky it will appear just above the aligned vertices of this modern monument. The above image was taken in late March during a beautiful auroral storm. (APOD)

The Venus Transit - 5th/6th June 2012

In this video, astrologer John Wadsworth discusses the astronomical and astrological significance of this year's Venus transit - and the extraordinary symmetry and harmony of the eight-year cycle of Venus-Sun conjunctions.
YouTube

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Last transit of Venus in the 21st century will happen June 5/6 2012

"Here’s something fun to think about as you gaze at Venus. By June 2012, as Venus leaves the evening sky to enter the morning sky, this brightest of planets will pass right in front of the sun, to stage one of the rarest of predictable astronomical phenomena: a transit of Venus across the sun’s face. This upcoming transit of Venus will be the last one for the 21st century. It will take place across a period of nearly 7 hours on June 5-6, 2012. During the transit, Venus will appear in silhouette as a small, dark dot moving in front of the solar disk. This exceedingly rare astronomical event – a transit of Venus – won’t happen again until December 11, 2117."
Read More @ EarthSky

Full Moon in Scorpio

According to metaphysical tradition, the Buddha was born, attained enlightenment, and left his body under the Scorpio Full Moon in May. The May 5-6 lunation is the second SuperMoon event of 2012- so expect emotional and tidal intensity. Mars, lord of Scorpio, now at the bendings (-90- Nodes) of the Moon's Nodal axis, may exacerbate combative tendencies under stress, or energize self-assertion and initiative positively. This is the largest Full Moon of 2012.

Scorpio is driven to go deep and uncover whatever is hidden or repressed. The related processes are regenerative in nature, but not always pleasant.

Many people here on the West Coast celebrate Cinco De Mayo on May 5, otherwise known as the cross quarter day of Beltane- while the elections in France and Greece take place May 6, the day of the Scorpio Full Moon in their time zone.

ATHENS (Reuters)- "On Monday, a 38-year-old geology lecturer hanged himself from a lamp post in Athens and on the same day a 35-year-old priest jumped to his death off his balcony in northern Greece. On Wednesday, a 23-year-old student shot himself in the head.

In a country that has had one of the lowest suicide rates in the world, a surge in the number of suicides in the wake of an economic crisis has shocked and gripped the Mediterranean nation- and its media- before a May 6 election."
Read More-> Suicides have Greeks on edge before election

Venus Out of Bounds

When we refer to a planet being out of bounds, we are referring to it's declination- position north or south of the celestial equator (the earth's equator extended into space). The Sun reaches about 23 and one half degrees north at the Summer Solstice and about 23 and one half degrees south at the Winter Solstice. A planet is considered out of bounds if it passes beyond these limits- also known as the tropics of Capricorn (23 south) and Cancer (23 north). Astrologically- the expression of a celestial body that has traveled out of bounds goes beyond the norm and tends towards extremes. It can be wild and unconventional, but not necessarily unfavorable.

Currently, Venus is in the mutable sign of Gemini, and out of bounds through the remainder of spring. Venus in Gemini lives to share ideas and information- enjoys variety, but may be fickle at times. Tweeting playfully the other day, I noted that Venus in Gemini loves a good mind f@ck.

On May 4, Venus is at greatest declination North (27.82 degrees) in its 8 year cycle, and conjunct the star El Nath, near the Horns of the Bull.

A declination graph on this site shows Venus out of bounds.

Luna, Jupiter, and the Space Station

From Images 108

Planet Earth has many moons. Its largest artifical moon, the International Space Station, streaks through this lovely skyview with clouds in silhouette against the fading light of a sunset. Captured from Stuttgart, Germany last Sunday, the frame also includes Earth's largest natural satellite 1.5 days after its New Moon phase. Just below and left of the young crescent is Jupiter, another bright celestial beacon hovering near the western horizon in early evening skies. Only briefly, as seen from the photographer's location, Jupiter and these moons of Earth formed the remarkably close triple conjunction. Of course, Jupiter has many moons too. In fact, close inspection of the photo will reveal tiny pin pricks of light near the bright planet, large natural satellites of Jupiter known as Galilean moons. (APOD)

Lunar Eclipse June 4, 2012

From my colleague Peter Stockinger:

"On 4 June 2012, there will be a partial lunar eclipse. The Moon will be in 14*13’ Sagittarius, opposing the Sun in 14*13’ Gemini. The eclipsed Moon and the Sun will be forming a square to Mars in Virgo and to the Arabic Part of Fortune in Pisces. Furthermore, retrograde Venus will be combust."
Read More-> Stars and Stones

Morning Moon and Mercury

From Images 108

Last week Mercury wandered far to the west of the Sun. As the solar system's innermost planet neared its greatest elongation or greatest angle from the Sun (for this apparition about 27 degrees) it was joined by an old crescent Moon. The conjunction was an engaging sight for early morning risers in the southern hemisphere. There the pair rose together in predawn skies, climbing high above the horizon along a steeply inclined ecliptic plane. This well composed sequence captures the rising Moon and Mercury above the city lights of Brisbane in Queensland, Australia. A stack of digital images, it consists of an exposure made every 3 minutes beginning at 4:15 am local time on April 19. Mercury's track is at the far right, separated from the Moon's path by about 8 degrees. (APOD)

Meteor over Crater Lake

From Images 108

Did you see it? One of the more common questions during a meteor shower occurs because the time it takes for a meteor to flash is typically less than the time it takes for a head to turn. Possibly, though, the glory of seeing bright meteors shoot across and knowing that they were once small pebbles on another world might make it all worthwhile, even if your observing partner(s) could not share in every particular experience. Peaking over the past few days, a dark moonless sky allowed the Lyrids meteor shower to exhibit as many as 30 visible meteors per hour from some locations. A bright Lyrid meteor streaks above picturesque Crater Lake in Oregon, USA, in the above composite of nine exposures taken last week. Snow covers the foreground, while the majestic central band of our home galaxy arches well behind the serene lake. Other meteor showers this year include the Perseids in mid-August and the Leonids in mid-November, both expected to also dodge the glare of a bright Moon in 2012. (APOD)

Review of "The Secrets of the Stars"

David Zinberg's review of The Secrets of the Stars by Rabbi Ari Storch

May a Jew believe in astrology? Most modern-leaning, traditional Jews would likely say no. Astrology has long been considered a pseudoscience, and we Jews have a proud tradition of scientific study and accomplishment which has flourished in parallel to our religious legacy. As rational twenty-first-century people, most of us would gladly consign astrology to its rightful place next to alchemy, magic, divination, and other medieval fallacies. Furthermore, from a moral and religious standpoint, we tend to regard free will as an axiom, and astrological determinism undermines the very foundation of human freedom and accountability. To posit a mechanism by which human behavior may be guided by the zodiac and the planets, acting as a sort of providential conduit between God and man – even if man is allowed to overcome that mechanism – is to diminish both man’s freedom and God’s omnipotence.

Yet references to astrology are found throughout the Talmud and the Midrash, and in the writings of great medieval Jewish thinkers. Abraham Ibn Ezra (c.1089-c.1161), for example, wrote several treatises on the subject and generously applied astrological theory in his biblical commentaries. Even Rashi (1040-1105), in his commentary on Exodus (quoting the Midrash), says that Pharaoh received advice from his astrologers on the day Moses was born and, before agreeing to release the Israelites, warned Moses of “a star that is a sign of blood and murder” awaiting them in the desert. So how can we reconcile the undeniable presence of astrology in Jewish texts with our modern conviction that it is nonsense?

Read More-> Rationalist Judaism

April 25- Rabbi Storch responds

See the Northern Lights from space

Another amazing time-lapse video of the spectacular northern lights as seen from the space station encircling Earth. NASA on CNN

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The waxing crescent Moon appears higher in the west each evening this week. And the planet Venus is also now a crescent, a phenomenon of great historical importance. SkyWeek: April 23-29

A Twister hits Oklahoma

(Reuters)- "Forecasters are warning of a major tornado outbreak in Kansas and Oklahoma this weekend, and Oklahoma got a first taste of it on Friday as a twister touched down in Norman.

A tornado was seen near the University of Oklahoma campus in Norman just after 4 p.m. local time- the same town that holds the National Storm Prediction Center.

The Norman tornado ripped roofs from buildings, downed power lines and uprooted trees across Norman, a town of 110,000 people 20 miles south of Oklahoma City, television images showed. City Hall was among the structures damaged."
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A stationary Mars was rising in Norman (-180- Neptune and -90- Moon's Nodes) when Friday's tornado struck. The mutable nature of the current grand cross/square (between Mars, Neptune, and Nodes) reflects highly changeable conditions in general.

From United States

Six Moon's of Saturn

From Images 108

How many moons does Saturn have? So far 62 have been discovered, the smallest only a fraction of a kilometer across. Six of its largest satellites can be seen here, though, in a sharp Saturnian family portrait taken on March 9. Larger than Earth's Moon and even slightly larger than Mercury, Titan has a diameter of 5,150 kilometers and starts the line-up at the lower left. Continuing to the right across the frame are Mimas, Tethys, [Saturn], Enceladus, Dione, and Rhea at far right. Saturn's first known natural satellite, Titan was discovered in 1655 by Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens, while most recently the satellite provisionally designated S/2009 S1 was found by the Cassini Imaging Science Team in 2009. Tonight, Saturn reaches opposition in planet Earth's sky, offering the best telescopic views of the ringed planet and moons. (Rafael Defavari)

This and That

Check out this awesome image of lightning striking the Bay Bridge: MailOnline

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Friggatriskaidekaphobia is an irrational fear of Friday the 13th.
2012 has three Friday the 13ths. What are the odds?

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Mars finally stations-direct (at 4 Virgo) tonight (PDT) after a frustrating retrograde period (in Virgo) which began Jan 23. The last few months were best spent going over our mode of operation (modus operandi) regarding work, health, and routines, so we might act more effectively as Mars gives us the green light to move forward and take the initiative. If we know what we want and are willing to be direct, there's no reason we can't fulfill our desires or realize goals. But it may take a few weeks for Mars to get up to speed, so be patient.

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Quote of the Day: "I believe the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness. That's clear. Whether we believe in a religion or not, whether one believes in this religion or that religion, we are all seeking something better in life. So, I think the very motion of our life is towards happiness." ~Dalai Lama

Dwarf Planets: Science and Facts...

From SPACE.com:
"Dwarf planets are worlds that are too small to be considered full-fledged planets, but too large to fall into smaller categories.

In recent years, there's been a lot of hubbub about Pluto losing its status as one of the planets in our solar system. Pluto is no longer considered the ninth planet in the series of major planetary objects, but instead is now just one of the many so-called "dwarf planets."

Astronomers estimate that there could be as many as 200 dwarf planets in the solar system and Kuiper Belt. But the differences between planets and dwarf planets may not be obvious at first."
Read More

Gaia from Space

From Images 108

On another April 12th, in 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Alexseyevich Gagarin became the first human to see planet Earth from space. Commenting on his view from orbit he reported, "The sky is very dark; the Earth is bluish. Everything is seen very clearly". To celebrate, consider this recent image from the orbiting International Space Station. A stunning view of the planet at night from an altitude of 240 miles, it was recorded on March 28. The lights of Moscow, Russia are near picture center and one of the station's solar panel arrays is on the left. Aurora and the glare of sunlight lie along the planet's gently curving horizon. Stars above the horizon include the compact Pleiades star cluster, immersed in the auroral glow. (NASA)

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Quote of the Day: "People will try to tell you that all the great opportunities have been snapped up. In reality, the world changes every second, blowing new opportunities in all directions, including yours." ~Ken Hakuta

6.5 Michoacan Earthquake

Magnitude 6.5 - Michoacan, Mexico

The April 6 SuperMoon (Full Moon with Luna at perigee) featured Saturn in a critical position at Mexico City- conjunct the IC-4th cusp (weather & earthquakes). Saturn can still be difficult even when exalted (in Libra) and with no hard aspects. But it's stationary Pluto that's the most intense influence now. And the chart for this quake shows a grand cross between the Midheaven (8 Cancer), Moon (5 Cap), Pluto (9 Cap), the Ascendant (8 Libra) and Uranus (6 Aries). In other words, the epic Uranus-Pluto square (massive change; sudden upheavals) is angular (powerful), and thus focused at the epicenter, with the Moon acting as a trigger.

From Mundane Charts

If We Had No Moon

Examine what life would be like if a major space collision with the Earth had not created its moon. Each day would last four hours, winds would blow with hurricane force, and Earth would be shrouded in a dense, toxic atmosphere.
TV Special-> The Science Channel

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A beautiful graphic of The Venus Cycle

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Pluto made it's annual stationary-retrograde yesterday, foreshadowing today's 8.6 magnitude quake off the coast of Sumatra, as Pluto stationed just 4 days after the April 6 SuperMoon event.

Some general info about Pluto

Pluto rose west of Jakarta, with Uranus sharply placed on the IC-4th cusp (weather & earthquakes) in Sumatra, as Pluto was stationing. April 10 Pluto station @ Sumatra

Zodiacal Light or False Dusk

From EarthSky:
"The zodiacal light – or false dusk – is an eerie light extending up from the horizon. You’re most likely to see it about an hour after sunset in the spring, or an hour before dawn in the autumn.

Maybe you’ve seen the zodiacal light in the sky and not realized it! Maybe while driving on a highway or country road – somewhere in the southern U.S. or similar latitudes – at this time of year. Suppose you’re driving west in the hour after dusk. You catch sight of what you think is the lingering evening twilight, or the light of a nearby town, just over the horizon. Instead, what you’re seeing is the zodiacal light.

This strange light is a seasonal phenomenon. You’re most likely to see it in the west after sunset in the late winter and early spring. In late summer and early autumn, you see it most often in the east before dawn. It looks like a hazy pyramid of light extending up from the western horizon, after evening twilight ends."
Read More

Io: Moon Over Jupiter

From Images 108

How big is Jupiter's moon Io? The most volcanic body in the Solar System, Io (usually pronounced "EYE-oh") is 3,600 kilometers in diameter, about the size of planet Earth's single large natural satellite. Gliding past Jupiter at the turn of the millennium, the Cassini spacecraft captured this awe inspiring view of active Io with the largest gas giant as a backdrop, offering a stunning demonstration of the ruling planet's relative size. Although in the above picture Io appears to be located just in front of the swirling Jovian clouds, Io hurtles around its orbit once every 42 hours at a distance of 420,000 kilometers or so from the center of Jupiter. That puts Io nearly 350,000 kilometers above Jupiter's cloud tops, roughly equivalent to the distance between Earth and Moon. The Cassini spacecraft itself was about 10 million kilometers from Jupiter when recording the image data. (APOD)

Accident at French Nuclear Plant

(MarketWatch)- French state-controlled utility Electricite de France SA said late Thursday that a leak was detected in a cooling pump of a reactor in the company's plant in the northwest of France, after two small fires were extinguished at the site earlier in the day.

In a statement, EDF said that a flaw was found in a joint on one of the four cooling pumps of the primary circuit in the building of its reactor number two at its nuclear power station in Penly, Normandy, causing a leak.
Read More

Mars is virtually stationary now, and in tight opposition to the 2012 Aries ingress (Vernal Equinox) Ascendant at Dieppe, France. Of course, the Aries ingress sets the tone for a 3 to 12 month period. While the red planet Mars suggests fires and accidents- the mundane Ascendant reflects the local conditions of a place and it's people.

From

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Quote of the Day: "The resurrection gives my life meaning and direction and the opportunity to start over no matter what my circumstances." ~Robert Flatt

How the Moon Affects the Day of Easter

By Joe Rao - www.SPACE.com:

Friday (April 6) brings us the first full moon of the new spring season.

The official moment that the moon turns full is 19:19 UT, or 3:19 p.m. EDT.

Traditionally, the April full moon is known as "the Pink Moon," supposedly as a tribute to the grass pink or wild ground phlox, considered one of the earliest widespread flowers of the spring. Other monikers include the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon and, among coastal Native American tribes, the Full Fish Moon, for when the shad came upstream to spawn.

(Traditional names for the full moons of the year are found in some publications, such as the Farmers' Almanac. We also published the complete list of full moon names here on SPACE.com. The origins of these names have been traced back to Native America, though they may also have evolved from old England or, as Guy Ottewell, editor of the annual publication Astronomical Calendar, suggests, "writer's fancy.")

The first full moon of spring is usually designated as the Paschal Full Moon or the Paschal Term. Traditionally, Easter is observed on the Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon. If the Paschal Moon occurs on a Sunday, Easter is the following Sunday.

Following these rules, we find that the date of Easter can fall as early as March 22 and as late as April 25. Pope Gregory XIII decreed this in 1582 as part of the Gregorian calendar. So according to the current ecclesiastical rules, Easter Sunday in 2012 is to be celebrated April 8.

Interestingly, these rules also state that the vernal equinox is fixed on March 21, despite the fact that from the years 2008 through 2101, at European longitudes it actually will occur no later than March 20.

Adding additional confusion is that there is also an "ecclesiastical" full moon, determined from ecclesiastical tables, whose date does not necessarily coincide with the "astronomical" full moon, which is based solely on astronomical calculations. In 1981, for example, the full moon occurred on Sunday, April 19, so Easter should have occurred on the following Sunday, April 26. But based on the ecclesiastical full moon, it occurred on the same day of the astronomical full moon, April 19!

Hence, there can sometimes be discrepancies between the ecclesiastical and astronomical versions for dating Easter. In the year 2038, for instance, the equinox will fall on March 20, with a full moon the next day, so astronomically speaking, Easter should fall on March 28 of that year. In reality, however, as mandated by the rules of the church, Easter 2038 will be observed as late as it can possibly come, on April 25.

So in practice, the date of Easter is determined not from astronomical computations but rather from other formulae such Golden Numbers.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, a proposal to change Easter to a fixed holiday rather than a movable one has been widely circulated, and in 1963 the Second Vatican Council said it would agree, provided a consensus could be reached among Christian churches. The second Sunday in April has been suggested as the most likely date. That, incidentally, works outs rather nicely this year.

The full moon occurring nearest to the autumnal equinox is traditionally called the Harvest Moon. What sets the Harvest Moon apart from the others is that instead of rising at its normal average of 50 minutes later each day, it seems to rise at nearly the same time for several nights.

In direct contrast to the Harvest Full Moon, the Paschal Full Moon appears to rise considerably later each night. Below we've provided some examples for 10 North American cities.

Although normally the moon rises about 50 minutes later each night, over this three-night interval for our relatively small sampling we can see that the rising of the moon comes, on the average, just over 76 minutes later each night. A quick study of the table shows that the night-to-night difference is greatest for the more northerly locations. (Edmonton, located at latitude 53.6ºN, sees moonrise come an average of 88minutes later.) Meanwhile, the difference is less at southerly locations. (In Miami, located at latitude 26ºN, the average difference is about 67 minutes.)

The reason for this seasonal circumstance is that the moon appears to move along the ecliptic (the path the sun takes across the sky), and at this time of year when rising, the ecliptic makes its largest angle with respect to the horizon for those living in the Northern Hemisphere.

In contrast, for those living in the Southern Hemisphere, the ecliptic at this time of year appears to stand at a more oblique angle to the eastern horizon. As such, the difference for the time of moonrise is noticeably less than the average of 50 minutes per night. In Sydney, Australia, for instance, the night-to-night difference amounts to just 40 minutes."

Quote of the Day

‎"Correcting oneself is correcting the whole world. The Sun is simply bright. It does not correct anyone. Because it shines, the whole world is full of light. Transforming yourself is a means of giving light to the whole world." ~Ramana Maharshi

Zodiacal Light Panorama

Click to enlarge image.

From Images 108

Sweeping from the eastern to western horizon, this 360 degree panorama follows the band of zodiacal light along the solar system's ecliptic plane. Dust scattering sunlight produces the faint zodiacal glow that spans this fundamental coordinate plane of the celestial sphere, corresponding to the apparent yearly path of the Sun through the sky and the plane of Earth's orbit. The fascinating panorama is a mosaic of images taken from dusk to dawn over the course of a single night at two different locations on Mauna Kea. The lights of Hilo, Hawaii are on the eastern (left) horizon, with the Subaru and twin Keck telescope structures near the western horizon. On that well chosen moonless night, Venus was shining as the morning star just above the eastern horizon, and Saturn was close to opposition. In fact, Saturn is seen immersed in a brightening of the zodiacal band known as the gegenschein. The gegenschein also lies near 180 degrees in elongation or angular distance from the Sun along the ecliptic. In the mosaic projection, the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy runs at an angle, crossing the horizontal band of zodiacal light above the two horizons. Nebulae, stars, and dust clouds of the bulging galactic center are rising in the east. (APOD: Miloslav Druckmüller & Shadia Habbal)

More on the Transit of Venus

Four-minute trailer summarizes the history and significance of the transit of Venus while preparing for June 5-6, 2012, spectacle. Story traces its value from early expeditions seeking to measure the size of the solar system, to similarities with transits around distant stars being detected by the Kepler spacecraft.
YouTube

Lunar Eclipse & Oakland Shooting

(Reuters)- A gunman opened fire at a private Christian college in California on Monday, killing at least seven people and wounding three others after telling former classmates to "get in line ... I'm going to kill you all."
Read More

Transiting Mars (violence-attacks) is virtually stationary now, and in tight square to the lord/ruler (Mercury at 5 Sagittarius) of the Dec. 10, 2011 total lunar eclipse (18 Gemini). In Oakland, CA, the eclipse Ascendant-Descendant axis (horizon) aligned with the powerful royal stars Antares and Aldeberan. Antares is a red star and known as the rival of Mars. But the key triggering and timing factor here, is a transit from Mars to the eclipse ruler Mercury, and also the transit of Mercury (eclipse lord) to the eclipse chart IC-4th house cusp.

Over the next 3 weeks or so, we will see more events that are related to the Dec. eclipse, as it's ruler receives energetic activation from Mars- releasing latent eclipse power. And if that lunar eclipse was important on a personal level- the issues it foreshadowed can resurface, especially around mid April when Mars stations direct (4 Virgo).

From California & San Francisco

Venus 2012

Animations and graphics of Venus in 2012 - its stations and retrograde movement, its occultation of Mercury, its transit of the sun and being cazimi, its going under sunbeams and becoming burnt up in the sun's rays, and its greatest elongations.
YouTube

Optimism, Originality, and Orthodoxy

OPTIMISM. Generally Jupiter is the planet of hope, especially when acting through his positive sign of Sagittarius, and those when this planet is strong will normally
incline to optimism and the cultivation of a cheerful outlook. This is especially so
if he is well configured with the luminaries. If prominent but afflicted, he often
gives false optimism and delusive anticipations. The Sun and Mars, Leo and Aries all
incline to hopefulness, and Aries people often come to grief, generally publicly, by
their extreme daring. Venus inclines to content and resignation rather than hope;
moreover, it is not a planet that looks into the future at all, either with
apprehension or hope. Saturn, even when strong, seldom indulges in false hopes, and when weak he causes fatalistic tendencies, lack of grit and despair.
ORIGINALITY and ORTHODOXY depend on the relative strength of Jupiter, Saturn and
Uranus. Saturn represents conservatism, Uranus the hatred of conventional ties,
and indeed, of ties of any sort. ~Encyclopaedia of Psychological Astrology, by C.E. O. Carter.

Leo Moon Quote

Let the passion that burns within burst forth onto the canvas of your life! ~Lisa Kiebzak

April 2012

April 3~ Venus enters precocious Gemini for an extended stay, because of her direct and retrograde motion. The rare Venus occultation of June 6 could be the most anticipated event of the year- besides the end of the 5125 year Mayan Long Count calendar. Venus will cross the disk of the Sun at the inferior conjunction, as she transits between the Sun and Earth. This occurs at 16 Gemini, which is the antiscion (mirror/shadow point) of the brightest star, Sirius, aka the Dog Star (14 Cancer). The contact between Venus and Sirius is generally favorable. Venus leaves the sign of the Twins on Aug. 7.

From Mundane Charts

April 4~ Mercury goes direct but is still in Pisces where it's a bit out-of-sorts and prone to fuzziness. But at least we get some minor relief from mercurial snafu's and delays. Intuition may partly compensate the lack of mental clarity. Mercury re-enters Aries April 16, and moves out of it's shadow phase April 23.

April 6~ Full Moon at 17 Libra, with the Moon's North Node conjunct Juno (both at 7 Sagittarius). The drive to connect and socialize is amplified- while conflict resolution is trending.

April 10~ Pluto stationary-retrograde indicates that the demoted planet will be especially powerful days before and after it stations. Astrologers know the potency of Pluto- however one chooses to classify it as a celestial body. Plutonian catharsis is deeply internalized for the next 5 months- so release whatever needs to be released, and something new can enter your life. It's natural to have painful emotions come up when we experience loss.

April 14~ Mars finally goes direct after a frustrating period of retrograde motion since Jan. 24 in the critical sign of Virgo. If we spent the last few months going over the details and refining our modus operandi, we can now move forward with energy and initiative in the best possible way.

April 19~ Sol enters Taurus the Bull and we might appreciate the blessings of the earth that sustain us in pleasure and comfort, even more deeply.

April 21~ New Moon in Taurus conjoins the asteroid Ceres, and sextiles Neptune. All loss is followed by a return- the return of the life force in the natural world after winter, and the return of the beloved after estrangement. This lunation highlights a new beginning regarding the need to nurture and be nurtured, that's essential to the Ceres archetype.
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Critical Mass Approaches by Bill Herbst