Neptune sextile Pluto

Two of the slowest planets in our solar system form a sextile aspect which ideally brings transformation through creativity and healing through self-sacrifice. That said, this is also a time that releases the obscure Jungian shadow. This may include doing honourable things but with immoral motives, or doing destructive things for well-intentioned reasons.

This is one of the many exact passes of Neptune sextile Pluto that takes place from 1950 and 2032. These two slow-moving planets have an unusual combined cycle. Although their cycle takes roughly 500 years from conjunction to conjunction, they sometimes spend a disproportionate amount of time in a sextile or trine aspect. They're currently in a "Long Sextile" period from 1940 to 2040, making 49 exact passes from 1950 to 2032. These transits are clumped into 3 time periods: 1950-1956, 1976-1986, and 2026-2032, spanning the signs from Libra/Leo through Aries/Aquarius.

2026 begins another period of multiple exact passes. These two planets weave together energies of surrender and transformation, creativity that draws on our unconscious passions (or obsessions), and aspiring toward ideals that encompass both the best and worst of our human nature.

Being such an extremely long-term phenomenon, this transit is likely to have the most effect within the collective, shown in significant changes in culture, politics, spirituality and priorities. Alternatively, on a personal level, you may feel the pull of passionate inspiration, and the desire to use personal empowerment to push situations into a context of higher purpose.

Sounds great, right? Just remember that Neptune is well known for casting its light through a prism of obscurity, so that it doesn't always look like what you think it does. It's wise therefore to question whether what you want to do is a wise choice. In other words, just because you can may or may not mean you should. Use your highest judgment.

Previous Neptune-Pluto sextile: 1844-1845. Dates for the current Neptune-Pluto cycle:

• Neptune conjunct Pluto (0°): 1891-1892.
• Current waxing sextile (60°): 1950-1956, 1976-1986, 2026-2032.
• Waxing square (90°): 2061-2065.
• Waxing trine (120°): 2087-2091.
• Opposition (180°): 2137-2141.
• Waning trine (120°): 2194-2205, 2229-2277.
• Waning square (90°): 2309-2312.
• Waning sextile (60°): 2337-2338.
• Next Neptune-Pluto conjunction (0°): 2385.

Mercury sextile Venus

There is a potential to benefit from social connections, diplomatic communication and receptive awareness during this transit, although a certain amount of effort is needed to make this happen. It can be a good time for negotiating contracts and other agreements, especially if you consciously focus your intent on achieving balance with your counterpart, partner or opponent that results in a win-win situation for all concerned. There is also potential to appreciate and express beauty, pleasure and sensuality. If there's someone in your life that you want to get closer to, try speaking gently and listening receptively, which can be the key that opens the door to harmonious interaction. Creative ideas can also find expression now if you apply your conscious awareness to bring them into focus. The thing to watch for is a tendency to use manipulation to achieve an advantage, which might be done by you or to you. Keep communication straightforward and clear, and find diplomatic ways to deal with manipulation if you sense it happening.

Mercury goes Direct

Mercury finally turns direct! Yippeeee!!!! ;-) But we're not out of the woods just yet. For up to a week before and after today, you may experience mental intensity, confusion, and miscommunications or simply changes in your outlook. After being Retrograde for the last 3 to 3½ weeks, Mercury is now taking a slow turn to resume Direct motion. This period has challenged you to rethink and rehash things that required some fine-tuning or revision. The Direct station can be a time when clearer decisions start to emerge from the issues and struggles you've encountered during the retrograde period. Or, it might turn your perspective around so that you're seeing your situation fresh again.

Over the next couple of weeks, while Mercury is still in the Shadow, your brain may feel a bit like it's gradually waking up after a deep sleep. During this time, you can gradually put into practice the learning and knowledge you've gained from your retrograde "dreams" and moonlight visions. It will take time to get fully back into sync with the Mercury direct energy. So, take it slow, one step at a time, and untangle yourself one strand at a time.

This particular Mercury retrograde cycle is in Cancer, giving you a chance to take good care of yourself or someone else or both. Nurturing love and kindness can go a long way during this time. This is especially true when a new way of seeing a situation may challenge you to reframe a relationship with a loved one. You might find it necessary to take a step back, making extra space to process something unexpected, eye-opening or disruptive. It may help to reframe old feelings and needs in a different way to make sense of new information and ideas.

Mercury makes the following aspects during this retrograde cycle (all dates in North American Eastern Time):

• Mercury ssq Uranus ~ Jul 14 (17:49 CN), Jul 15 (19:33 CN), Aug 1 (20:01 CN)
• Mercury sxt Venus ~ Jul 24 (16:20 CN/VI)

Here are the key dates of this Mercury cycle (for North American Eastern Time):

• Mercury enters the Shadow ~ Jun 12 (16:19 CN)
• Mercury-Sun greatest elongation PM ~ Jun 15 (19:01 CN)
• Mercury Stationary Retrograde ~ Jun 29 (26:15 CN)
• Mercury Rx conjunct the Sun ~ Jul 13 (20:42 CN)
• Mercury Stationary Direct ~ Jul 23 (16:18 CN)
• Mercury-Sun greatest elongation AM ~ Aug 2 (20:42 CN)
• Mercury leaves the Shadow ~ Aug 9 (26:15 CN)

Sun square Chiron

Your self-confidence and patience may be a bit strained right now, stretched by the urge to break free of chronic constraints. Motivation and self-esteem may seem to sag and suffer from old problems that you thought were resolved. This is probably because you are seeing "the flaws in the system" that are preventing you from getting the results you want. It will help to take a fresh approach to your situation. You may need to let go of what you think the results "should be" or how they should come to you. Be open to getting what you want in a different form than you were expecting. You may have to work extra hard for results now, especially if it means having to find a different route to success. If it seems like a door of opportunity has closed, look for an unexpected advantage or hidden alternative. This could allow you to tap into other opportunities that wouldn't have been possible otherwise.

Moon goes Out of Bounds

The Moon is Out-of-Bounds (OOB) by declination from Jul. 23 (22 SC 42) to Jul. 28, 2026 (27 CP 23).

During this time, your feelings and emotions may move in a different kind of rhythm. One possible effect is that you might feel more disconnected from the world around you; perhaps a bit alone, lonely or isolated. Or, this could be a welcome change where you can let the stresses of the world roll off your back more easily. Or, your emotions could be a bit erratic, extreme or harder to contain. The common thread through these diverse experiences is that your feeling state may reach beyond your usual range of feelings. If you're an artist, musician, writer or other creative person, this can be a very inspiring time as your creativity and imagination could more easily flow into unusual ideas, whims and impulses. Watch to see how you respond during this time. You can work on finding ways to channel this energy into positive, productive, creative experiences, or use it as an opportunity to take another step in your emotional healing.

Sun enters Leo

Happy Solar Return to all Leos! Today the Sun moves into its own sign, so its radiant energy is extra bright during this time. Leo's focus is on identity, individuality, self-esteem, creativity, self-expression and fun. You can benefit by rejuvenating, revitalising and rekindling the fiery spirit of who you are. Celebrate your existence! Do something that reminds you about who you are. Recharge your batteries and do things that help you return to the centre of the orbiting circumstances in your life – not spinning around at the edges where you feel at the mercy of everything around you. What are you doing (or what do you want to do) in your life that express the passions that move you? What is the focus of your sense of purpose in life, and what is your next step in moving toward that? If you've been feeling like you're stuck or have lost your sense of purpose, do something that uplifts you. If you could do anything with your life that you wanted to, what would it be? And what one thing (even just a small thing) can you do to take a step toward that goal? Rejuvenate your sense of self and do things that help you to just BE who you are. Hang out with children and watch how they play and are spontaneously free. Find ways to connect to your joyful Inner Child. Celebrate your existence!

Jupiter sextile Uranus

Wisdom and truth now shine a light on struggle and gloom in your life. By looking beyond your immediate challenges, your far-reaching vision and expanded understanding can lighten the load a bit. This energy may not splash itself across the sky, but is more like a potential you can tap into if you reach out for it. This can also be a time when wisdom and understanding can be gathered from the areas of life that might normally feel difficult or blocked – making lemonade out of the lemons, so to speak.

Jupiter opposite Pluto

Once you have something fascinating or enlightening in your sights, what do you do with that? Alternatively, when you discover something disturbing, unsettling or with heavy implications, how do you respond? For example, do you want to understand and explore it, figure out what makes it tick and discover what it means? Or do you try to steer it, control it, utilize it and manipulate it to take advantage of it?

Neither of these alternatives is all good or all bad; they can potentially be used well for whatever best fits the situation you're in. However, it may not be possible to do both at once. It's very difficult to be receptive to what something can teach you, while also exploiting it for what it can do for you.

Under this transit, you may have to choose between the two, which could leave you feeling anything from mild frustration to a bit of panic, depending on what's at stake and how attached you are to each alternative. To resolve this dilemma, the urge to polarize could be very strong. In other words, feeling pressured to choose one "side" and crank up its volume, in order to drown out the other side and distance yourself from it. However, this kind of response tends to only perpetuate and amplify the problem, rather than solve it.

For a lasting peace, both sides of the issue need to be included in the solution. Sometimes compromise will be necessary, but if you become locked into a polarized extreme it could make compromise seem like failure (when it's probably not). There may be a difficult reality that must be faced AND also an opportunity to understand it from a higher perspective. They don't have to be (nor should they be) mutually exclusive.

You may need to embrace a position of power in some way, and from there you must choose whether to balance it with compassion and understanding or with condemnation and self-righteousness. Alternatively, you might be called upon to take a stand about something involving moral values, ethics or principles, and you'll need to decide whether to take the path that gives you control and influence for your own benefit or for the greater benefit of all involved. For example, it may be better to allow an enemy to save face, in order to avoid both of you becoming locked in opposing extremes. Avoid all-or-nothing rigidity; aim for a win-win flexibility.

Jupiter is opposite Pluto: 1900, 2912, 1925, 1937, 1950, 1962-63, 1975, 1988, 2000-01, 2013-14, 2026, 2038-39, 2051.

Jupiter trine Neptune

This long-term process brings the opportunity to integrate healing, beauty, imagination, spirituality and uplifting optimism. You may also see yourself become so caught up in hope, optimism and euphoria that it's easy to get a bit too carried away, leaving realism behind. Although falling into fantasy and wishful thinking can make you more susceptible to illusion and deception, it can also bring healing inspiration and dedication when you need it most. This can be a time when you bring into clearer focus a new sense of faith (in terms of religious beliefs, or just faith in life and in yourself). You may now be able to see beyond your usual horizons to the distant possibilities open to you, if you can keep that new faith in focus. This inspiration may not last in its current form, but can be used to clarify and enhance the goals you have been pursuing for many years, as well as formulate some new ones.

Mars sextile Saturn

There is an opportunity to harness the energy of willpower using practical discipline. Your physical and mental energy are likely to be stable and enduring, or else they can become this way more easily than usual by applying a sustained focus of effort. This is a great transit if you need to be productive or to make progress in a goal that you are working toward. The thing to watch out for is a tendency to be over-cautious to the point where you get stuck in the planning stage and don't get much done. Or, you might try to rush into the production phase before your plans are fully formed. This transit works best when these areas are brought into balance.

Uranus trine Pluto

Uranus and Pluto collaborate to generate deep-seated change out of disruption and insight. This kind of change requires that old structures be broken up so that something new can be built out of the rubble. This part of the Uranus-Pluto cycle is more about the need to clear away the debris and see the creative potential in the fragments left over from the previous dis-integration.

Remember the social upheaval and "cultural revolution" of the 1960s? That was the conjunction of Uranus and Pluto. Remember the economic and political upheaval of the 2010s? That was the Uranus-Pluto square. The next dynamic aspect will be in the 2040s with the Uranus-Pluto opposition.

In between, there are the more easy-going aspects, starting with the Uranus-Pluto sextile in the late 1990s, and just prior to that Uranus was conjunct Neptune. At that time, we saw the rise of the Internet that has precipitated a new kind of social upheaval that is still unfolding.

And now we have the Uranus-Pluto trine from 2026-2028, which steps in and out of a 6° orb from 2023 to 2030. Outer planet transits are never "easy" but they tend to facilitate a smoother, less sharp unfolding of the evolutionary process of the entire bi-planetary cycle. This may be seen as a positive or negative thing depending on how you feel about the overall transition of the cycle.

During this time Uranus, Neptune and Pluto form a Mini-Trine aspect pattern (Uranus trine Pluto, with Neptune sextile to both). These three planetary energies come together in a potentially positive, cooperative way, but since we're dealing with larger-than-life energies it's also possible that their effect could have unexpected consequences.

On a personal level, this is a time when you have a chance to find creative and unique ways to express and live your spirituality. Take everyday activities and find ways to do them in a way that honours and invites a higher mindset and purpose.

Previous Uranus-Pluto trine: 1921-1922. Dates for the current Uranus-Pluto cycle:

• Uranus conjunct Pluto (0°): Oct. 09 1965, Apr. 04 1966, Jun. 30 1966.
• Waxing sextile (60°): 1995-1997.
• Waxing square (90°): 2012-2015.
• Current waxing trine (120°): 2026-2028.
• Opposition (180°): 2046-2048.
• Waning trine (120°): 2063-2065.
• Waning square (90°): 2073-2074.
• Waning sextile (60°): 2083-2084.
• Next Uranus-Pluto conjunction (0°): 2104.

Uranus sextile Neptune

Neptune's imagination and longing to be part of something greater than oneself combines creatively with Uranus' love of shaking things up and trying something uncharacteristically different. At their best, they can inspire a yearning to reach beyond your comfort zone, especially regarding what you believe in, what you put your faith in, or what you long to see in the world. On the other hand, they could combine in a way that becomes manipulative or seductive – put another way, just because you can doesn't necessarily mean you should.

This can manifest especially when you're struggling to make sense of a crisis of faith or to break free of disillusionment and disappointment. Trying to force something to change in a certain way might just make the situation worse, so it's important to include some honest objectivity and good judgment. This can be a good time to experiment with creative and imaginative ideas, but remember that it will still manifest within Saturn's realm of reality and consequences.

It's pretty rare that Uranus and Neptune form a major aspect. Both planets move so slowly, and their energies can be so abstract, that their effects may be hardly noticeable, other than generally within the collective or in retrospect. These energies may be more perceptible in your mental "peripheral vision" that shimmers just outside your conscious focus.

Uranus and Neptune, respectively, make 5 exact passes of this sextile aspect:

• 29 Aug 2025 ~ 01:26 of Gemini/Aries
• 20 Nov 2025 ~ 29:29 of Taurus/Pisces
• 15 Jul 2026 ~ 04:23 of Gemini/Aries
• 15 Jan 2027 ~ 01:56 of Gemini/Aries
• 6 Jun 2027 ~ 06:21 of Gemini/Aries

The Uranus-Neptune cycle runs about 172 years (from conjunction to conjunction). The key dates of this current cycle are:

• Uranus conjunct Neptune (0°): Feb. 02 1993, Aug. 20 1993 and Oct. 24 1993.
• Current waxing sextile (60°): 2025 to 2027.
• Waxing square (90°): 2039-2041.
• Waxing trine (120°): 2051-2054.
• Opposition (180°): 2078-2081.
• Waning trine (120°): 2111-2114.
• Waning square (90°): 2124-2127.
• Waning sextile (60°): 2137-2138.
• Uranus-Neptune conjunction (0°): 2165.

Moon comes In-Bounds

The Moon now comes back In-Bounds (InB) by declination after being Out-of-Bounds from Jul. 10 (22 TA 55) to Jul. 14, 2026 (27 CN 23).

While the Moon was Out of Bounds (OOB) your emotional state may have been a bit disconnected, detached, isolated, or pushing you to go beyond your usual potential. This could have been either a welcome change or a difficult energy for you to deal with. So, when the Moon comes In-Bounds, you typically return to whatever your "normal" is. If your OOB journey was stressful or intense, you may find some relief now that the Moon is back In-B, or you're now in a position to integrate what you've learned from your experience. If your OOB journey felt like a welcome reprieve from the everyday stress or "noise" of the world around you, coming back In-B will hopefully give you a fresh start, like coming back from a brief vacation. The Moon will go OOB next in about 10 days, give or take.

NEW MOON IN CANCER

A new 4-week lunar cycle begins with the New Moon in Cancer, ruled by the nurturing Moon. Cancer is the sign of family, home, security, feelings, and our need for belonging. This lunar cycle can be used to work with this energy – to listen to your intuition, to reach out to others to offer and/or ask for nurturing, and connect with home and family; or to support yourself when you're overwhelmed. This Water sign seeks a feeling-based experience of life on a deeply personal level. As a Cardinal sign, Cancer reaches out to form bonds of connection and belonging, and work with intuition and creativity.

Venus square Uranus

Under this transit, you may be tempted by impulse spending, or you might be somewhat erratic in your use of resources. This can result in unpredictable or unstable finances, so double check your bank accounts and credit cards before you draw on them. It is also a time when the way you relate to others (or they to you) could be somewhat inconsistent, fickle or impulsive. If your relationships or financial situation have been struggling with difficulties for a while, this transit could bring a lingering problem to the surface and require attention. On one hand, this could be a welcome breath of fresh air that cuts through the complexity of your problems and puts the cards on the table (despite the stress and conflict that likely triggered it). Or, you might feel resistance to making these changes and instead experience this as a time of unwelcome instability, upset and adjustment. However, this may be a good way to break free of excessive restraint, control or structure, which allows new possibilities to emerge that couldn't do so otherwise.

Sun conjunct Mercury

During this transit, your sense of self and purpose can become merged with what you think, perceive and say. On one hand, this can make for an easy flow of ideas and communication from inside your brain to the external world. It can also increase your perceptions and observations of the world, as you file it all away in your internal database. On the other hand, you may find yourself a bit tongue-tied, as it could be hard to separate your sense of self from your perceptions and ideas enough to find the words to adequately express them. In that case, just observe and go with the flow; the words will come later. It can also be a time when it's not easy to be objective, especially about yourself and how you bring yourself to the world around you. It's like your Being automatically expresses and sets into motion the things you think, perceive and want to say. This can help you to feel like your sense of self is shining effortlessly, but if your thoughts and perceptions are in conflict with other parts of you (e. g. , emotions, needs, objectivity) then it might become a time when you act a little too quickly with blinders on. Strive for balance and self-honesty before you act.

The peak of Mercury conjunct the Sun is when it is Cazimi, which means being exact within 1 degree of arc (or some use 17 minutes of arc). For the few hours that this takes place, a Cazimi planet is said to be very strong. In the case of Mercury, your perceptions, awareness, thoughts and ability to put your thoughts into words may be unusually clear, focused or direct – even more-so since this happens in Mercury's sign of Gemini. You are still cautioned that an extra sharp wit might still be used with negative consequences, intentionally or not.