When the Moon and the Sun line up with the Earth at New and Full Moon the combined gravitational influence can be seen and felt along our coastlines as extreme tides called spring tides. This June New Moon is at perigee (closest to the earth) at about 360,000 kilometres away. (The year’s most distant New Moon in December will be over 400,000 kilometres away.) The gravitational pull is at its greatest, producing rare and exceptionally high tides. These are called proxigean spring tides and occur about every one and a half years. Expect large tides for several days, and some possible flooding if the high tides are accompanied by low barometric pressure, strong onshore winds and with heavy rain. June is also the month of the Summer Solstice. The Solstice marks the longest day (and the shortest night!) of the year in the northern hemisphere and is also the day that the Sun rises and sets the farthest north on the horizon, and is highest in its path across the sky. The path of the apparent orbit of the sun around the earth is referred to as the Ecliptic and it is here that we find the Zodiac constellations and the Planets as they pass through them. This Month we have five Planets appearing to move backwards, or in retrograde motion, through the Zodiac. Astrologically this serves to pave the way for leaps forward later in the year. Jupiter, seeker of higher truth, turned retrograde in early May. For most of June Mercury is retrograde through Gemini which gives us the opportunity to make corrections and go over the details once more whilst plans are slow to move forward. From May 26 through to November 1 Neptune is also retrograde bringing a heightened sensitivity which can be both an asset and a liability. Our feelings are more honed to picking up and perceiving the illusive. It is easier to discover information about issues that have eluded us while Neptune was direct and we may realise where we have been duped. It is important to listen to the “inner voice,” so that you can see more of what is going on. Pluto moves back into Sagittarius on Friday the 13th for the last time in 240 years to oppose Gemini by sign. This is the final review of all the challenges and changes we’ve experienced since 1995 and important realisations made now allow us to put key resolutions into place. Uranus, planet of change and liberation, also turns retrograde on June 26, which provides more of the alternative perspective needed for us to view situations as they truly are and we should expect the unexpected. During this time, chaos may be present either externally in the outside world or internally within the individual. Use this time to look at and compare the old way to a new way. The recent information we have gathered gives us the opportunity to make different choices.
The next New Moon is at 14° Gemini on the 3rd June at 8:24 pm