Sextuple Syzygy

Six planets are aligned in the sky right now. Here’s the astrology behind our solar system’s family reunion.

Sommer Wagen

From now until the beginning of February, six of our planetary neighbors—Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune—will be aligned in the night sky.

Well, “aligned” is a generous term. Clumped is a better (albeit less cool) word.

This phenomenon is due to the orbit of the solar system’s planets, including Earth, along the ecliptic. All of the planets were formed from the same flat disc of dust and gas that surrounded the sun when it first formed, which put us all on roughly the same orbital path.

From our perspective, it looks like the sun is the one that’s following the ecliptic, but that’s only because ~we’re~ the real followers.

But that’s not the whole story. Because distance weakens gravitational pull, our more distant neighbors orbit the sun more slowly, which typically puts the planets in disparate positions across the sky.

Right now, though, the planets are catching up with each other in one big celestial family reunion.

While astronomers have been quick to “erm, actually” and clarify that this reunion isn’t that rare, there’s no doubt that it’s fucking cool. And there’s got to be some astrological meaning to all of this.

You may have noticed a sort of ~vibe shift~ that has happened over the past month. You can look to all those different planetary energies concentrating in the sky for answers.

For one thing, this reunion is watery. Four of the six planets are currently in water signs: Mars in Cancer, and Venus, Saturn and Neptune all in Pisces. These planets are cradling each other’s faces, tears in their eyes, telling each other, “It’s been so long!”

Here on Earth, everything feels in flux right now; the future of humanity is as murky as the deep sea. That future is rapidly approaching and shifting shape, but none of us know how to handle it.

You might feel similarly about your own future.

What makes a difference is how you approach deep waters. Are you intrigued or apprehensive?

Three of the six planets are also in retrograde: Jupiter, Uranus, and our watery friend, Mars in Cancer.

During retrograde, a planet’s orbital speed—whether slower or faster than Earth’s—will make that planet appear to travel across our sky backwards, even though it doesn’t actually change direction. Astrologically, this causes issues in the realms each planet rules, but it also encourages us to ask how those realms reflect our inner worlds.

The usually highly energetic Mars has slowed waaay down, asking us to consider how we approach conflict, particularly regarding the people we’re close to.

Cancer is a very sentimental, very protective sign. The whole ocean is too much for just one crab. Right now, we need to focus on what we can fight for and how we can help locally.

If/when the world comes crashing down, who will you invite to join your apocalypse commune?

Meanwhile, Jupiter retrograde in Gemini is telling us to throw all of our long-term goals at the wall and see what sticks. Uranus retrograde in Taurus urges patience, even while we feel stuck with everything moving so quickly around us. The trick is to anchor ourselves with what we know makes each of us special, and what makes life—in all of its toughness and tenderness—worth living.

These planets will leave retrograde in early February, just as the family reunion will be winding down (Mars will take its time and go direct on February 23). Our eyes might adjust to the murkiness, and we’ll be able to examine the physics of how our goals are sticking to the wall. Knowing and loving our idiosyncrasies will help us stand strong against them being snuffed out.

Family reunions, whether with blood or chosen relatives, can certainly be chaotic, much like the beginning of this new year. But they’re also opportunities for reconnection and to ground ourselves in the people and places we came from.

The other day I checked the TimePassages astrology app on my phone and was reminded of Venus currently being in Pisces, the daydreaming, expansive, mutable fish. The horoscope said, “Love knows no boundaries now.”

In the chaos of our earthly realm today, the stars are reminding us what lies at the root of our humanity. Whether or not you believe in astrology, it’s a message all of us could use right now.

In the words of FKA twigs, “Do you feel alone? You’re not alone.”