Living with the Stars

  Welcome to the Full Moon in Sagittarius or the May Full Moon. May is such a pretty month in our Maltese calendar - not too hot, not too chilly (but also a little too 'sandy': the air is full of Saharan sand when the wind blows from the south).... in other words, just right.  The Full Moon in Sag is a culmination of all that which was sown at the New Moon at 18 degrees of Taurus. In the May 8th New Moon chart, Jupiter was at the crucial degree of Algol, the most malefic star in the heavens - that of around 25 degrees of Taurus, which is where Malta's natal Jupiter lies. The star Algol is also known as the Medusa's head - and oh my, Jupiter (the Law Courts) has had a few heads rolling, though the story is not yet complete. Truth be told, 'as above, so below'; watching other news channels reveals that this is happening everywhere else in the world. Our island no different.  So - what's the story for this Full Moon? Well - it's exam season isn't it? We...

  Today's lunar eclipse is also a Full Moon, and it is happening in the zodiac sign of Scorpio. Full Moons occur when the Sun is opposite the Moon and therefore we can surmise that  Sun is currently transiting the sign of Taurus. Hence, the sun throws all its light onto the moon, which then reflects it to Earth. Enter the Moon's Nodes: This is where the Moon's orbital path crosses the ecliptic (the equator projected out into space).  A full moon elipse can only occur when the Moon is within 15 degrees of the lunar nodes. If it is exactly on the nodal point, then the eclipse is a total one.  Added to that is the fact that the Moon's orbital path is not circular, but elliptical. This means that there are times when the Moon is closer to Earth than at other times. Today is such a day - so apart from a total Full Moon eclipse, this Full Moon is also at perigee (closer to Earth) and therefore will appear bigger. (image credit:Nasa) A whole lot has been written about solar...