This year is going to be very dynamic, to say the least. January starts out with a Supermoon Full moon on January 1st, all the planets in direct motion by January 3rd (until March 8th!), a stellium of 6 planets in Capricorn on January 15th and 16th (extremely rare), a new moon on January 16th that conjuncts the Solar Eclipse from last August (which was a very sensitive eclipse for the natal chart of the country) and a second Supermoon Full moon (also a lunar eclipse) on January 31st.

The rest of the year is just as intense, astrologically speaking. We have almost two whole months without any retrograde planets, so we may feel like we are all going full speed ahead at the beginning of the year. Plan on scheduling some down time for yourself and your family so you don’t wear yourself out. On the other hand, you may have a rest period forced upon you this summer when 3 to 6 planets are retrograde in June, and 4 to 6 planets are retrograde in July and August. At least don’t plan on getting too much done. The time will better be used for reflection and integration. We have a total of 5 eclipses this year instead of the customary 4 eclipses. This places emphasis on change.

We’ll be getting used to a lot of new planetary energy this year. Saturn just went into Capricorn, where is will be for 2.5 years, Jupiter switches into Sagittarius closer to the end of the year. In between, Uranus moves into Taurus in May; which could provoke earth changes or may produce some unusual activity in real estate. Mars moves into Capricorn in March, then into Pisces in Aquarius in September, and finishes the year in Pisces. The movement of more planets into feminine signs will be a nice reprieve after last year’s fiery energy. Expect more women to speak out against injustice and for the issues that concern women and children to be important in the mid-term elections.

2018 starts off with a big boost of energy in the form of a Super Full Moon at 11 degrees of Cancer. This is within 2 degrees of a conjunction with the Sun in the 7th house of natal chart of the nation and re-activates the lunar eclipse energy we felt last August. The populations’ sense of security, legal issues in general, and our nation’s relationships with other countries will surely be a focal point this year. As this Full moon is also conjunct the president’s natal Mercury, I imagine we will see an amplification of his usual communication style too.

January’s New Moon on the 16th is part of the six planet conjunction concentrated in Capricorn. These six planets will aspect half of the planets in our nation’s natal chart: natal Pluto in Capricorn and 4 natal planets in Cancer (the sign opposite or 180 degrees across from Capricorn). giving this new moon extra importance for our country. Some issues brought into focus by this new moon include public health, Medicare, issues of race/ appearance, banks, debt, finance, investments and material possessions, emoluments, money in general, the stock market, legal issues and contracts, public gatherings, and taxes.

The second Supermoon Full moon in January is the first eclipse of 2018 and takes place on January 31st at 11 degrees of Leo. This sign will be revisited on August 11th by last eclipse of the year and may literally rekindle some of the fire element we experienced in 2017.

February is distinctive in that there is no Full moon that month. The New Moon is, therefore, referred to as a Black Moon. It is also a solar eclipse. The eclipse takes place at 27 degrees of Aquarius, directly opposite the eclipse point that hit the US’s moon last August. This will likely be unsettling for our country’s psyche. Because it is such an energetic new moon, I recommend that we take this time to reflect on what we really want to manifest this year. This goes far beyond the usual New Year’s resolutions. Think of the big picture and what steps you need to take to get you to your goals. Write it all down down on February 15th in the late afternoon or as late as the next day. Then file it away and see what happens.

On March 18th Mars moves into Capricorn and meets up with Saturn on April 1st. This creates a laser-like focus on material concerns (Capricorn and Saturn) and related to the US’s natal houses that were activated by the Capricorn stellium in January. The issues mentioned in paragraph five continue to be dominant themes. Keep these in mind and proceed prudently in 2018.