What tonight’s Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn may mean for mankind (according to astrology)
When things are going well, we tend to say “the stars aligned”. In the current state of things, with Tier 4 misery and Christmas being cancelled, that’s an unheard-of phrase. Instead, tonight, the planets will align.
About 45 minutes after sunset, Jupiter and Saturn, which are more than 400 million miles apart, will appear to come together to form what is known as a “Great Conjunction” – where they will appear to form a single bright “star”. It will be the closest the planets have been in 800 years, since 1226.
But tonight’s Great Conjunction has a special significance, according to astrologists. “For the last 200 years, the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn has been occurring in Earth signs – and that’s a lot to do with structure and commerce and practicality and manufacturing,” explains Victor Olliver, editor of The Astrological Journal. These earth signs include Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn.
However, tonight’s Great Conjunction will occur in Aquarius, which is an air sign – and conjunctions will take place in air signs for the next 200 years. “Air as an energy is a completely different concept – it’s about altruism and concepts,” astrologer Carolyne Faulkner previously told The Telegraph. “Earth energy triggers people to become more grounded, practical, sensible; to have respect for politicians and institutions. Air energy triggers cerebral, less tangible happenings.”
With that in mind, tonight’s astrological phenomenon could mark the beginning of a shake-up in how we live. “What we’re seeing is not so much that we wake up one morning to a new world,” Olliver clarifies, “but what we’re seeing is a greater acceleration towards those things.” Here are the five theories about what the Great Conjunction might mean:
THEORY ONE: It’s the star of Bethlehem
As they align to form what looks like one great star, is it too fanciful, with Christmas approaching, to say this is a replica of the star of Bethlehem?
Not according to Brother Guy Consolmagno SJ, planetary scientist and Director of the Vatican Observatory. In an online lecture on Thursday evening, the eminent Catholic scientist said the Great Conjunction might illustrate the story of the Star of Bethlehem – the star which, according to the Bible, appeared unnaturally bright in the night sky. “One of the more popular explanations for the star [of Bethlehem] is a close conjunction of bright planets,” he explains.
The Star of Bethlehem might have been caused by a conjunction of planets, much like the one we will see tonight. In 2BC, there was a conjunction of Venus and Jupiter which, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, would have appeared “in the general direction of Bethlehem”.
THEORY TWO: New developments in space travel and vaccines are on the horizon
Astrologers seem to agree that the Great Conjunction of 2020 happening under an air sign is meaningful as “Aquarius is the sign of innovation, of pioneering technologies”, Olliver says. This includes the development of the Covid-19 vaccine. “It’s very interesting that vaccines have been found, just as we are on the eve of going into Air [signs],” Olliver says, “and that’s very much to do with vaccines and infections and things like that.”
We are going to enter an era of “hyper-science,” he predicts. Faulkner agrees: “Aquarius energy is revolutionary, high-tech and about creating things that work through waves, signals, electricity and beams. This is a good time for advancements in the digital world – media, technology, space travel…”
Space travel is within our grasp, according to Olliver. “People like Elon Musk and Richard Branson, they’re already plotting our way into space and Aquarius happens to be the sign of space as well,” he says.
“In the next two decades… we will see colonies on the moon.” He also predicts there will be a man mission to Mars, and developments in travel.
THEORY THREE: The ‘woke’ movement is only beginning
Aquarius is significant because it is the sign of compassion, meaning that we could see more of a “spotlight on more humanitarian issues” according to Faulkner.
We have already seen this earlier in 2020 with the growth in the Black Lives Matter movement, she says, and this will only continue to grow.
Aquarius is a sign that combines both compassion and control. “It’s hyper-humanitarian,” according to Olliver. “There’s a greater concern about the way people feel and their sensitivities, but there’s also a greater control – because these groups wish to control the sensibility of the whole of the group.”
THEORY FOUR: We will become a ‘global village’
Olliver predicts there will be greater connection between communities in the next 200 years (while conjunctions happen in air sign) but particularly in the next 20 years (when Saturn and Jupiter are still in Aquarius). “Air is associated with greater communication – we see that already with the internet, but there will be greater development of robotics,” he predicts. “What air does is to accelerate these processes.”
The Great Conjunction’s occurrence in Aquarius is particularly important because it is “the sign of the internet and of computers” according to Olliver, due to its revolutionary energy that creates things through waves and signals. This means there could be greater developments in the internet and computer technology in the next 20 years, while Saturn and Jupiter are in Aquarius.
Oliver also predicts there will be “more impersonal services” that mean we all live in a “global village” that is connected to one another. “We’re going to see 3D holograms in our drawing rooms and things like that,” he predicts. This does come at a cost, he says – namely, “greater invasions of our personal space”.
THEORY FIVE: Acceleration of pollution, and more pandemics
“I think climate change will unfortunately accelerate during this phase,” Olliver says, putting this down to an increase in pollution.
As this year has taught us, however, pollution isn’t the only harmful phenomenon that can pass through the air. “I do think we’re going to see more pandemics, I’m afraid,” Olliver says. He points to how it is thought that coronavirus spread more quickly through air travel.
But it’s not all doom and gloom. While pollution and pandemics could be on the horizon, this will also be an age of technological innovation, which could mean “solving some of the problems of climate change”, Olliver says, as well as developing new vaccines.
