Spiritual Forum

The summer solstice is Sunday, June 21, at 1 p.m. EDT (Eastern Daylight Time) — the moment the sun shines directly on the Tropic of Cancer, an imaginary line north of the equator.

This is the first day of astronomical summer and also the longest day of the year for people in the Northern Hemisphere. Washington, D.C., for example, will have nearly 15 hours of daylight.

So what's actually happening in space?

The Earth rotates around the sun, always tilted on its axis at a 23.5-degree angle.

Because of this tilt, the latitudes of 23.5 degrees north and 23.5 degrees south are important. The line at this latitude above the equator is called the Tropic of Cancer, and below the equator it's called the Tropic of Capricorn.

On Sunday, the Earth will be positioned so that the sun shines directly on the Tropic of Cancer, which crosses countries such as Mexico, China and India.

Meanwhile, the Southern Hemisphere is tilted away from the sun on Saturday, so people there will experience the winter solstice and the shortest day of the year.

The opposite happens in December: The sun shines directly on the Tropic of Capricorn, and the Southern Hemisphere experiences its summer solstice, while the Northern Hemisphere experiences its winter solstice.

The word "solstice" comes from the Latin words for sun and to stand still. On Sunday, the sun will appear to stay at the same height in the sky, as in the days before and after the solstice.

The biggest misconception about the summer solstice: People think the Earth is closer to the sun.

"We're not actually closer to the sun," C. Alex Young, associate director for science in the heliophysics division at NASA, said in an interview with USA TODAY Network.

The solstices aren't a result of the distance from the sun but the Earth's axis tilting toward or away from the sun, he said.

Because of this tilt, we have seasons. In June, the Northern Hemisphere receives more energy, which is absorbed by the oceans and atmosphere and then "re-radiated over time," so we have summer, Young said.

"If Earth was just straight up and down, there would never be a winter or summer. It would be the same in the north and south," he said.

Basic Astrology Interpretation

The Quincux aspect (150 degree angle) defines minor tension.  The quincux is significant between Mars (which is close to being overhead, and conjunct the star of Betelgeuse) and Saturn (in the third and conjunct the star of Toliman (or Alpha Centauri)).  I interpret this quincux formation as minor tension between citizens and authorities (possibly involving police or military), but not enough to define an open and hostile conflict (although there is that possibility since Mars and Saturn are old enemies, and both are in a tension-type angularity with each other).

The star of Aldebaran ("Archangel Michael," "Watcher Of The East") is conjunct Mercury.  Unfortunately, this combo is in a very hard square ("technical conflict") with Neptune in the sixth house.  The sixth house is often called Neptune's house of detriment, since the twelfth house (which is 180 degrees away) is considered the house of Neptune.

The square between Mercury (in the ninth) and Neptune (in the sixth) indicates strong potential for media deception or lies this summer.  Neptune rules deception, and Neptune is in the sixth house (and the sixth house rules health, sanitation, government employees, labor unions, and military or police personnel).

This could define either another shananigan with our (s)elected officials (hence possibly another scandal) or a real conflict among government employees (including the ones with the nice uniforms and suits).  This conflict may also concern involvement with international areas or aspects (since the ninth house represents international religion, law, travel, viewpoints, and news.  And yes, Mercury is in the ruling sign of Gemini, which is strongly related to the news media).

The trine (120 degree angle) between Jupiter in the eleventh and Uranus in the seventh is strong, and trines represent harmonious cooperation of energies. This could represent "surprising good news" (which is what Jupiter / Uranus represents) involving international associates (represented by Jupiter in the eleventh) or a legal interpretation indicating a defense of individual freedom (which is strongly defined by Jupiter / Uranus).

Because the seventh house has a lot to do with face-offs, especially in courts of law, there could be a very important legal decision this summer.  This type of decision could have implications affecting the United States (since the midpoint of this Jupiter trine Uranus aspect is very close to 20 degrees Gemini, which is the Ascendant placement for the horoscope of the United States).

Overall, I interpret this summer as being one of tension between citizens and authorities, and also a summer having much public inquiry about questionable activities with international implications.

Thanks for reading.

Love to all,

Malcolm