I’ve been away from Solaris Astrology for a bit taking a bit of an Olympics break. Everyone needs to recharge their batteries and the games here in London so far have been a triumph. So too was the successful landing for NASA for “Curiosity”, a mission to land a vehicle the size of a small car on Mars. Curiosity is the most technically advanced rover ever to be sent to one of our neighbouring planets and landed on schedule in the middle of the Gale Crater on the red planet. It’s mission over the next few years will be to search for the signs the Mars previously supported or can support life.
The idea for NASA or the National Aeronautics and Space Administration was signed into law by US President Eisenhower on 29th July 1958, but it actually started operating on 1st October of that year, and this is the chart that I use. This chart has Saturn the sign of ambition in the sign of long long distance travel Sagittarius, trine to Uranus the planet of pushing back boundaries and of technology and space and a square to a Pisces Midheaven. The public face of NASA is to explore the vastness of our solar system and universe and Pisces does not have any boundaries, it absolutely represents the public aims and ambitions (square to Saturn) of NASA. It is also interesting to note that NASA’s ascendant is in Cancer, the sign of security. NASA was launched in response to the perceived security threat from the Soviet Union who had launched the world first satellite in 1957, Sputnik 1.
Venus, Mercury and the Sun show idealism and an in house sense of spirit and this conjunction makes opposition and quindecile aspects to the Midheaven, forms a t-square to Saturn bringing an attention to detail to their everyday work; Venus the planet of cooperation is in perfectionist Virgo. The 4th house conjunction also makes a triple trine to Mars, the planet of the pioneer, of speed and of force in the 11th house of teamwork.
The Moon also sits in the 11th house square to Uranus and opposite to Jupiter and Neptune. Of course the collective of people (Moon) who work for NASA are some of the finest scientists and technical minds (Uranus) there are, and the notion of astronauts can be seen by the Jupiter Neptune conjunction in the 5th house in Scorpio. Here is the idea of stretching human limits, experiencing ultimate forces and travelling to places humans previously had not travelled to. In the 5th house here is creativity and the taking of severe risks too, the nature of Jupiter in Scorpio is to be unafraid and yet philosophical of the dangers involved. Pluto in Virgo in the 3rd house shows analytical thinking and a desire to carry out research and uncover mysteries and secrets. Finally this Pluto makes a square to Mars, showing a unquenchable determination to achieve one’s aims; this aspect is also associated with power struggles which is so apt for the timing of the creation of the agency.
The birth of NASA coincided with 4 significant conjunction between the planets and the fixed stars. Firstly the Sun was conjunct Diadem in the constellation of Coma Berenices. This conjunction shows those who work for the benefit of others and there is no doubt that the work, exploration and scientific experiments carried out by NASA have benefitted mankind enormously. The Moon was conjunct Menkar, the star in the mouth of Cetus the Whale showing that the actions of NASA were emotionally committed to and would have far reaching effects for the population of our planet. Mars was conjunct to Mirfak, one of the stars in Perseus the warrior, showing an organisation that used pure physical energy to propel their missions into space, and in the process their missions were to be a catalyst for change in the world we live in. Uranus’ conjunction to Dubhe in Ursa Major (the Great Bear) is also an interesting connection as it is associated with promoting one’s own culture. NASA’s ambitions have always been tied to the promotion of the American Dream of being able to achieve whatever one wanted to achieve. By travelling and exploring the planets and our solar system, NASA’s aim was to promote America’s ingenuity and strength.
Curiosity landed at 22.32 on 5th August 2012 and the comparison between NASA’s chart and shows a couple of amazing coincidences. Firstly look at transiting Saturn in conjunction with transiting Mars hitting NASA’s North Node of destiny. Saturn conjunct the North Node often shows success and a reward, and of course the safe landing of their Mars Rover is a huge reward for all the work and preparation for this Mars mission. Incredibly, the transiting South Node is exactly conjunct NASA’s natal Mars and square to Pluto, the planet of secrets and of empowerment. Transiting Neptune, the planet of dreams is square to natal Mars, opposite Pluto and trine to NASA’s Jupiter Neptune conjunction operating out of the 9th house of long distance travel and knowledge. Something makes me think that this mission is going to be an unqualified success, unlocking the mysteries of Mars, furthering knowledge as the mists clear. All the outer planets are in significant action on this chart with Uranus opposing NASA’s Sun - could this be an indication of surprise unexpected results which could be gleaned? Transiting Pluto is also part of the picture square both Sun and Mercury, this suggests digging beneath the surface of issues trying to prove the unexplained and the opposition to the NASA ascendant shows that NASA’s priorities could well transform in the coming years. Could this be the precursor eventually to a manned trip to Mars? We shall see…
