One problem with eclipses – aside from disputes about their meaning (expose or cover up?) – is that they get blamed for unfortunate events, personal or global, when other astrological omens might equally be held ‘responsible’. April’s planetary picture deserves especial scrutiny for this reason. A total solar eclipse like this on April 8 is not uncommon – there was one in April 2023, but because it was visible only from the North coast of Australia, it attracted far less attention than this April’s black out, which extends from Mexico to Canada.
Another, far rarer planetary event arrives on April 20, when Jupiter and Prometheus conjoin, a meeting that only occurs every fourteen years. Their last conjunction in Taurus being May 1941. The combination of Jupiter – lofty thought, belief systems – and Prometheus – invention, revolution – is linked to intellectual breakthroughs. Antennae on alert then.
The cosmos, as seen from our own blue planet, seems to be in a hurry, with only one planet in retrograde – as that happens to be Mercury, the message is, by all means rush, but first think twice.
Major events
- Mercury is Aries all month, retrograde until 25 April.
- Venus is in Pisces until 5 April, then Aries until 29 April, then Taurus
- Mars is in Pisces all month until April 30 then Aries.
- Jupiter is in Taurus all month.
- Saturn is in Pisces all month.
- Prometheus is in Taurus all month.
- Neptune is in Pisces all month.
- Pluto is in Aquarius all month.
- 8 April – Total solar eclipse in Aries at 18.21 GMT
- 10 April – Mars/Saturn conjunction in Pisces
- 19 April – Sun moves into Taurus.
- 20 April – Jupiter/Prometheus conjunction in Taurus
- 23 April – full Moon in Scorpio at 23.49 GMT
Aries and Aries Rising
Everybody loves a lover, and Venus in your skies between April 5 and 28 offers a happy strategy for coping with an intense, perhaps frustrating birthday month. The solar eclipse of the 8th brings an uncertain element to proceedings – a clean wipe of the slate if that’s your birthday. Mercury retrogrades in your skies until the 25th is a promise of small-scale frustrations to plans. Hey ho, it’s still your birthday, and Venus and Mercury offer a splendid chance to celebrate, chatter, dance and lay on the style, meanwhile putting to rest any ghosts and ghoulies in your personal cupboard.
The time for rolled-up sleeves to wrestle with issues and demand attention is May, when your fearless Mars ruler is super powerful in your skies. Meanwhile, with a bit of luck you can add to your bank account – the Jupiter/Uranus conjunction of April 20 should show you how. Happy Birthday.
Taurus and Taurus rising
How busy can you be? April is full of offers about how you might usefully spend your time. Planets in Pisces represent fellow travellers, people with whom you click and with whom you can do business, of which there is no shortage, especially if you are an early May birthday. On the other hand, some planets in Aries (plus a solar eclipse) which represent a more introvert spell when you can confront your fears, regrets and the like.
Then there is the big event of the month/year on April 20, when Jupiter and Prometheus meet in Taurus. Most Taureans – any birthday before May 12 – have already experienced a transit by both planets, but their conjunction is an earth shaker and game changer for all of you, a beneficent event by most accounts, though Taureans are often averse to any kind of change, even the good sort!
You have your hands full at the end of April for other reasons. The Sun arrives in the Bull on the 20th with ruler Venus following on the 29th. There is also a full Moon in play on the 23rd/24th in your opposing sign of Scorpio, a moment to appreciate your partner – or pick a fight with them.
Gemini and Gemini rising
It’s hard to feel in control of your destiny when you are being leant on by two uncompromising planets (Saturn and Mars), and where official matters are concerned, you may just have to tough it out in April. Complicating things further is a retrograde of your ruler, Mercury, for most of the month. Show patience, expect jobs to require being done twice, be on the lookout for encounters with old friends and flames.
Fun times and fine company are available from current chums, however, as Venus zips through your eleventh house. Your twelfth solar house, the place where you confront ghosts that won’t rest and fears for the future, is highlighted in the final week of the month, when a lie-down, perhaps on a therapist’s couch, may be required.
Cancer and Cancer rising
Think of the solar eclipse of April 8 as a glorified new Moon and it spells the chance – or even the insistence – of a career reset. Given Mercury’s backward spell in the same zone, you may have to scrap for it and jump through hoops, but a spring renewal of your public role is available. Old and new fellow travellers are very much part of the scenario, thanks to that Jupiter/Prometheus conjunction.
April may also prove an emotional month. Cancer is above all a water sign, responsive to your Moon ruler, and the Scorpio full Moon of the 25th aligns with a slinky pairing of Venus and Neptune in Pisces to form a dynamic triangle of water signs when it will be too easy to get carried away, hopefully in a very pleasant manner.
Leo and Leo rising
Keep the long view in mind. A retrograde Mercury means you advance your cause in stuttering fashion, while the total eclipse of the Sun – Leo’s celestial ruler no less – may bring a change in your personal weather. Events and people (maybe lovers) at a distance are part of the month’s scenario. You surface for air once the Sun reaches the peak of your ‘scope on the 20th, and with the Jupiter/Prometheus conjunction, perfecting on the 21st, grand ideas about your career are in order, with May nicely set up to move onwards and upwards.
The full Moon of the 25th may also help reframe ideas about where your working life is heading or bring fresh thoughts about relocation. The most personal and emotional issues are likely to surface after the 10th, with the 16th/17th, when the Moon is in you skies, making the issues clear.
Virgo and Virgo rising
Feeling tricky? Not a bad idea actually, as April is unlikely to be the most straightforward month of your personal year. For starters there’s three weeks of your totem planet, Mercury, in retrograde, not the most challenging of transits but enough to ruffle a Virgo tailfeather. More vexing is Mars in opposition for the entire month, a cue for your main squeeze to bring out your, uh, more critical side, especially when it passes Saturn on April 10, around the time of the solar eclipse. As if you didn’t have enough on your plate, especially if you are a birthday circa September 6 and already dealing with Saturn’s heavyweight issues. Plus, beware misinformation – or brazen deceit – late in April as Mars meets Neptune.
The good news is firstly that once the Sun reaches your fellow earth sign Taurus on the 20th, the picture brightens. Mercury starts behaving on the 25th and that historic conjunction of Jupiter and Prometheus arrives to surprise us all, with birthdays circa September 14 sweetly aligned to its promise.
Libra and Libra rising
The season of Aries – opposite but complementary sign to your own – often finds you on the back foot and energetically depleted. This year it has a lighter touch, despite that slightly scary solar eclipse. For one thing, Mercury in retreat brings just the kind of prevarication – ‘let’s talk about it tomorrow’ – favoured by many Librans. There is no rush in April. For another, your Venus ruler in opposition promises the deepening of an association started six months back at a solar eclipse in your own sign, or its demise. For others, romantic or heartfelt encounters are in the air. Mercury’s turn to forwards motion on the 25th should clear the air of any misunderstandings.
The season of Taurus moves your agenda on to money matters. Maybe Jupiter grants you a (or your partner) a windfall, maybe not, but the full Moon of April 23 shines a bright light on what you have and what you need .
Scorpio and Scorpio rising
The mixture of influences that April brings should keep you on your toes. Scorpio energy runs deep, but even you are not immune to burning the candle at both ends. On a purely positive note, comes your ruling planet, Mars, coursing through Pisces and the most pleasurable zone of your horoscope. Love affairs, hobbies, creating masterpieces on canvas or throwing the best party in town – all are covered by tis transit. Follow your nose accordingly.
The first problem is that with Saturn also here, you can’t simply run riot; your long-term agenda, what you hope to achieve over ’24 and ’25, must be honoured. Plus, with an eclipse in your work zone alongside a wayward mercury, everyday routines are likely to prove unpredictable.
Finally, there is the rare conjunction of Jupiter and Prometheus bang opposite you, with your main squeeze likely to prove demanding as well as rewarding. The month of Taurus brings all partnership issues into sharp, maybe uncomfortable, focus with the full Moon of the 23rd putting you on the spot – Mars is still in play to help you find a way to enjoy the limelight.
Sagittarius and Sagittarius rising
Staying on the mundane plain for starters, Mars and Saturn demand a realistic approach to home, family and your living situation. Steady efforts here – towards relocation maybe – bring rewards but avoid fantasies. Then there is the matter of your ruling planet, Jupiter, which occupies your zone of everyday work, with its conjunction with Prometheus arriving later in April promising great things (like promotion) if you can maintain the pace.
However, temptation, romance, wild times and fun are also in the offing thanks to the Sun and Venus in fiery Aries and the pleasure zone of your ‘scope. An eclipse here adds an unpredictable streak to events, as does a retrograde Mercury, but impromptu events rarely bother a Centaur – the wild nights is calling. You will need to calm things down once the month of Taurus arrives, though a fat Moon in your skies over the weekend of the 26th gives you a perfect perspective.
Capricorn and Capricorn rising
A month of many parts. Ongoing, and with some vigour, is a social life which this month is driven by Mars and which may oblige you to run errands for friends, neighbours, siblings and assorted waifs and strays. All rewarding of course, but not necessarily joyous. You may find more delight closer to home and family, bit with a solar eclipse near the root of your chart (plus a retrograde Mercury), you may be cogitating on where exactly you live, and how you family fit into your own needs. There is no rush to make decisions – quite the contrary – but you may look back and see that spring 2023 and spring 2024 is when issues hit climax point.
The same may be true of decisions involving your romantic life or your creative endeavours. Since last May Jupiter’s presence in Taurus has promised a good year for affairs of the heart. The giant planet’s conjunction with wayward Prometheus this month tests your progress and how far you have yet to go to find fulfilment. As much proves you a lodestone (and a following wind) across spring.
Aquarius and Aquarius rising
Consolidation is the first order of the month. Mars and Saturn in your financial zone favour long term strategy, not short-term spending. Where you might need to flash the cash is in your social life, where with Venus and Mercury in play, alongside a solar eclipse, there are serendipitous encounters to be made, and with Mercury retrograde, mates to meet and the chance of an old flame’s re-appearance, especially around the 17th.
The full Moon of the 23rd returns you to domestic issues, though not with any alarm. Do your duty by the family and figure out how you can either expand your domestic arrangements or relocate entirely.
Pisces and Pisces rising
What’s that retreating in the rear-view mirror? Why, it’s the past! Saturn is well into its transit through the Fishes, insisting that your attention is firmly on the present and future. What aids your cause is cold realism about what you can achieve in the next year or two. That goes double in April, when Mars is also in your skies to lend you energy, though its conjunction with Saturn on the 10th is not a moment for rash decisions.
Eclipses across your financial axis should help you keep focus, with a retrograde Mercury suggesting you go back to sweep up every last penny you are owed. It isn’t a time to be sentimental or offhand about money. Mars passing Neptune towards the end of the month is a time for adventure (and a bit of fancy dress) but not at the expense of your bank account. You do, however, have allies to hand around the full Moon of the 23rd, when your ruling planet – Jupiter – conjoins Prometheus.
Let someone else pick up the tab.
For details of all new Moon and full Moon dates, plus Mercury retrogrades and eclipses, there’s a free download available at Pam Carruthers’ site www.healingstars.com
Want to know the Key Astrology Dates 2024 to help you plan ahead?
My webmaster, fellow astrologer and friend Pam Carruthers has compiled 2 FREE REPORTS. The New and Full Moons in 2024, followed by the Mercury Retrograde and Eclipses Report.
The most important days in the entire year to avoid launching any new projects are the days of the Solar and Lunar eclipses and the days when Mercury goes Retrograde.
The Karmic Axis
Eclipses are major turning points in the year. In astrology they are indicated by the nodes of the Moon. The Lunar nodes aren’t planets. Eclipses happen when there is an alignment with the Sun, the Moon and the Earth. When these are aligned eclipses occur, which happen twice a year.
The Moon’s Nodes form an axis in astrology, which in our birth chart is said to represent one’s destiny or spiritual quest in life. The North Node points to a key lesson in our lives. It represents new experiences towards which we must aim during this life. We have already learnt the skills of its opposite point, the South Node, in the past. Now we must grow and stretch ourselves through the North Node.
In the birth chart this polarity indicates your past life (south node) and destiny (north node). This is known as the Karmic Axis. So the people born in that time span are our Soul group. In approx. 19 years the cycle repeats, so people born 19 years apart from us share the same lunar node sign, and are also aligned to our Soul group.
Eclipses 2024 are times for a major reboot
In 2024 the transiting North node is in Aries, the south node is in Libra. The theme will focus us on our relationships.
To sum up, eclipses are powerful new or full moons. Ideal for rituals and meditation but not good for parties, weddings, or any celebrations.