There are a few major changes amongst the planets this year which contribute to the tone of the next two decades:

• Mars in Capricorn for courage and victory

• Mars retrograde for reconfiguring our actions

• Pluto in Aquarius for 20 years of revolution

• Jupiter conjunct Uranus for extreme weather

• Jupiter in Gemini for increase in social technologies

• Jupiter square Saturn for forcing structured growth

On 5th January 2024 Mars enters Capricorn and will be there for nearly six weeks, until 14th February. Mars takes roughly one year and 11 months to complete a full cycle of the zodiac and the last time that Mars was in Capricorn was the beginning of 2022.

Capricorn is the sign where Mars is exalted. The Persio-Arabic astrologer al-Qabīsī describes a planet in its domicile signs (which for Mars are Aries and Scorpio) like a man in his own home and his own rule, but in his sign of exaltation he is like a man in his own kingdom and glory. 

Therefore this will be a very strong and potent Mars which will surely be noticed in mundane as well as personal matters. Mars is the warrior general and is present in conflict and competition. Historical astrologers describe him as a hot and dry planet, fiery and choleric in nature. He is courageous, logical and sharp. So with Mars in Capricorn, it can help us to be more productive, active and confident. It can give us the endurance to work towards long term goals. Use this time to work efficiently with diligence and form desirable habits to propel you forward. This is also a great time to get physically active and develop an exercise routine that you have a much better chance of really sticking to!

Abū Ma’shar gives Mars significance to occupying diverse lands, foreigners as well as battles. When Mars is strong, these themes become more active and reach a peak in their course.  

Mars will go retrograde at the end of the year from 6th December until 25th February 2025. He will station retrograde at 6 degrees of Leo, so anyone with a planet or a house cusp at this degree will likely feel the effects more strongly in accordance with the specific signification for their chart. Mars retrograde can be tough, and in general it can often throw a spanner in the works and make us reconsider our actions. When Mars is retrograde, making progress is not as easy as usual, which can be frustrating. Utilise the period when Mars is in Capricorn to get your ducks in a row, this will surely ease some of the difficulty that Mars retrograde can bring. 

Perhaps the biggest and most significant event of 2024 is Pluto entering Aquarius. He enters Aquarius on 21st January, turns retrograde in the Autumn, moves back into Capricorn but then turns direct and enters Aquarius on 19th November where he will transit for 20 years. 

The movements of Uranus Neptune and Pluto are significantly slower than the rest of the planets in the solar system, and for this reason their effects are more evident in historical analysis and generational experiences. 

Pluto is the ruler of the underworld and the god of great wealth. He takes his meaning from the myths of Hades and Ploutos which throughout antiquity have been linked together. This gives Pluto two combined significations, one of earthly abundance and another of a darker force that lies beneath. Pluto governs all of the earthly materials that lie beneath the soil which in turn can give great wealth. Therefore the movements of Pluto can show the discovery of prime materials and the changing ways they are used. 

The last time Pluto moved through Aquarius was between 1776 and 1806 which occurred during the French, American and Industrial Revolutions, so we can expect similar events to unfold over the next 20 years. This includes major leaps and changes in technology, energy sources and prime materials. We can expect the use of AI, robots, electric cars and crypto currency to increase dramatically and transform the world as we know it today. 

Historically, Aquarius is associated with flowing water, seas and canals, and as such there was a great impact on the water and sea during the revolutions of the 18th and 19th centuries. Again we can expect a similar theme to become more prevalent over the next two decades. Possibilities include water power, the extraction of energy that lies under the ocean, and attention to water pollution.

Flowing water brings change, which is one of the reasons why Aquarius is the sign of innovation and novelty. Aquarius is also associated with mountainous and uninhabited land, whilst being one of the domicile signs of Saturn. This connection with far and out of reach places gives Aquarius the nature of oversight, distance and broad perspective. Aquarius is the one who enters previously uncharted territory and gives rise to invention. 

Finally, Aquarius is a human, hot, wet and airy sign, giving it the qualities of connectivity and sociability. So we can expect new ways in how society is structured and how we socialise and interact with the community. 

The next important event is that Jupiter will conjunct Uranus in the sign of Taurus on 21st April. Jupiter conjoins with Uranus once every 13 years or so, so this event is pretty rare. The last time they conjoined in Taurus was in 1941. Uranus is one of the Greek primordial deities and rules over the sky and the etymology of his name can be traced back to the words rain, or rain maker. Jupiter on the other hand is the equivalent to Zeus who is the god of thunder and lightning. 

So this planetary combination portends to extreme storms or weather conditions that affect the terrain as signified by Taurus, an earth sign. We may see these events slowly unfold as the two planets come into orb from March. 

Jupiter will exit Taurus and enter Gemini on 25th May. Jupiter spends roughly one year in each zodiac sign, so his move into Gemini is not unusual to us but it does change the way that Jupiter will behave quite significantly as it is the sign of Jupiter’s detriment. 

In this sign Jupiter is opposite his domicile of Sagittarius where he is expansive and free. In Gemini, Jupiter behaves more like Mercury who is the ruler of Gemini, and focuses more on details by compartmentalising and learning skills. 

Jupiter is the planet of justice, religious figures and gurus, so when he is moving through Gemini, these themes are somewhat less authentic. 

Whatever Jupiter touches enlarges and expands like a balloon, so Jupiter’s passage into an air sign ruled by Mercury portends to the continued development of social technologies. Jupiter will make a trine to Pluto immediately as he enters Gemini, opening a window of opportunity for this new technology to come through. 

Then Jupiter will make two squares to Saturn this year, one on 19th August and the other on 25th December. Square aspects between these two planets occur once every 8 or 9 years and are therefore significant on a grand scale. They may not affect each of our personal lives but the changes in the world around us correlate. 

The circumstances that we see emerging from this alignment could include intense power struggles between two great forces, such as religious ideals signified by Jupiter and old establishments signified by Saturn. 

Jupiter is known as the greater benefic and Saturn is the greater malefic. Jupiter is the planet of growth and prosperity whilst Saturn restricts and limits. With these two energies clashing, it’s a time where we can feel torn between the optimistic hopes for the future and our basic but important responsibilities. Finding concord between these two ideals will be tense, but it brings into focus what needs to be resolved within these areas to enable constructive and stable growth. 

Wishing you a peaceful 2024.