A solar annular eclipse will occur on December 26, 2019. An appulse (penumbral) lunar eclipse will follow two weeks later on January 10, 2020. This article is mostly about the solar eclipse, and I will write more about the lunar eclipse at a later date.

(Please note that I am a sidereal Vedic astrologer and my calculations are based on the sidereal zodiac, Lahiri ayanamsa, not on the tropical calendar used by most western astrologers.)

An eclipse occurs when the luminaries align in a particular way with the lunar nodes. The lunar nodes are two opposing points on the Sun’s apparent path known as the “ecliptic,” where the Moon crosses on either 1) the ascending path, known as the North Node, Rahu, the Dragon’s Head, or Caput Draconis; or 2) the descending path, known as the South Node, Ketu, the Dragon’s Tail, or Cauda Draconis. The term “eclipse” is derived from the term “ecliptic.”

An eclipse can occur even if the luminaries are not exactly conjoined the lunar nodes. The eclipses happen exactly on the New and Full Moon, but because of the Moon’s tilt to the ecliptic and the Earth, an eclipse does not happen every Full or New Moon. In other words, there are specific astronomical parameters required for an eclipse to occur.

A solar eclipse falls on a New Moon when the Sun, Moon and Earth align so that the Moon blocks the light of the Sun. A lunar eclipse occurs on a Full Moon when the Earth’s shadow blocks the lunar light (the Earth is between the Sun and the Moon). If the Sun and Moon are quite close to the lunar nodes (within 10 to 12 zodiacal degrees), total eclipses are formed. With further distance of around 18 degrees, they become partial solar or appulse lunar eclipses.Another kind of eclipse known as an “annular solar eclipse” is formed when the Moon is further away from the Earth as compared to its position in a total solar eclipse. The eclipse of December 26, 2019 is an annular solar eclipse. In this case, the added distance gives the appearance of the Moon being smaller in the sky, so that it will not completely cover the Sun. Instead, a “ring of fire” (the annulus) will remain around the edges.

The full path of the annular phase of this solar eclipse will be visible from Saudi Arabia, Southern India, Sri Lanka, and parts of Indonesia and into the Philippines and Guam. Weather permitting, those in Europe, other parts of the Middle East (Arabian Peninsula) and Southeast Asia, and North/West Australia will see a partial eclipse.

Using the exact lunar phase calculation, the maximum eclipse will occur at 5:12:59 AM UTC or 00:12: 59 AM EST. Using the maximum eclipse time calculation instead, the maximum time will be 5:17:46 AM UTC or 00:17:46 AM EST. Please consult TimeandDate for more details and to calculate the time of the eclipse for your area. Keep in mind that it will occur before midnight December 25 for points west of EST, and after midnight December 26 for points east of EST.

Here are the eclipse charts, and please note that I use the Mean Lunar Node calculation for my charts, not the True Node calculation:

Other important points:

1. A lunar eclipse is not possible without a solar eclipse. They occur about two weeks apart. The solar eclipse can occur either before or after the lunar eclipse, and sometimes both can occur: a lunar eclipse followed by a solar eclipse followed by a lunar eclipse, or a solar eclipse followed by a lunar eclipse followed by a solar eclipse, but these are rare. The maximum number of solar eclipses that can take place in the same year is five, but again this is rare. According to NASA calculations, only about 25 years of the past 5,000 years have had 5 solar eclipses. The last time this happened was in 1935, and the next time will be in 2206. In 2020, we will have four appulse lunar eclipses occurring on January 10, June 5, July 5, and November 30. And in 2020, there will be two solar eclipses: an annular eclipse on the solstice on June 21, and a total solar eclipse on December 14.

2. The lunar nodes are retrograde, and so the eclipse points back up about 10 degrees each year.

3. Rahu and Ketu traverse one sign every 18 months and take about 18 years to traverse the whole zodiac. Using the Mean Node calculation (and the sidereal zodiac which I use exclusively), they are in Gemini and Sagittarius from March 6, 2019 until September 23, 2020, and in Taurus and Scorpio from September 23, 2020 until April 8, 2022. The signs where the nodes are transiting will mark where the eclipses occur during the nodal transits. Additionally, within one year, the eclipse patterns occur in one sign, and then six months later, in the opposing one. For instance, the December solar eclipse will occur in Sagittarius, and the next solar eclipse will occur in the opposite sign of Gemini (June 21, 2020). The lunar eclipse of January 10, 2020 will occur in Gemini; the one after that in June 2020 will be in Scorpio-Sagittarius, and the one after that in July 4, 2020 will be in Sagittarius.

For more information on the transit of the lunar nodes and eclipses in Gemini and Sagittarius, please refer to my previous article titled “Heading Toward a New World Order.”

4. Zodiac Position: One way to look at the difference between the placement of the luminaries (Sun-Moon) and the lunar nodes in an eclipse chart is that the luminaries will determine the timing of the eclipse, whereas the node marks the zodiac point of the eclipse that will be most activated. The zodiac position of the node at maximum eclipse (at exact Full or New Moon) sometimes becomes a “critical degree” afterward. Another way to see this, which I have seen to be true, is that the degrees of both the luminaries and the nodes in an eclipse become critical degrees. Therefore, I will be watching triggers to the degrees in Sagittarius from about 10-14 degrees and within a few degrees either side.

5. The strength and time of an eclipse can vary widely and this has astrological repercussions. The one on December 26 will be quite large (and hence, powerful) as it will cover 97% of the Sun, creating a dramatic view for observers in a path up to 118 kilometers or 73 miles wide. It will appears as a partial eclipse over a region of the Earth thousands of kilometers wide. It last 3 minutes and 40 seconds (3 and 2/3 minutes) at the point of maximum eclipse.

One way to interpret this is that the eclipse which is of 3 and 2/3 minutes will have ramifications for up to 3 and 2/3 years after the eclipse. Conversely, as a rule of thumb, I generally consider lunar eclipses to be active for a few months before and after they occur, whereas solar eclipses are active at least for 6 months before and after they occur. That said, we may see a dramatic or climactic event (or events) as we come close to the actual day of an eclipse.

6. Several days before, during, and after an eclipse can be an unstable period in which some intense personal and mundane events could occur. Even in the weeks leading up to an eclipse, we can see it triggering events. Some astrologers consider the whole two-week period between two eclipses to be a potentially “sensitive” time. It is recommended that one not initiate an important action or decide important issues in these periods, especially the three days before and after an eclipse. For taking important action or making important decisions any time, and especially during eclipse seasons, I recommend you consult an astrologer for a muhurta or astrological “election.”

7. When another planet crosses the critical degree point before or after an eclipse occurs, dynamic events can occur. My friend, astrologer Joni Patry, describes this as a “land mine ready to explode.” These degrees can be used to forecast the future. For instance, in the chart below, notice that on 9/11, Mars and Ketu in transit were opposed the luminaries in the June 21, 2001 eclipse chart. This was a huge trigger for a terror event as Mars and Ketu in transit came to the U.S. Kelleher birth chart ascendant on 9/11, and the June 2001 eclipse had also activated natal planets in the 1/7 axis of the Kelleher chart, too (including natal Mars).

8. What concerns me quite a bit about the December 2019 eclipse is that Mars by transit will hit the “land mine ready to explode” in the second half of February 2020 (or first few days of March). It will join Ketu in transit and cross the U.S. Kelleher ascendant, as well.

9. The more planets that line up in the eclipse axis, the stronger the effects of the eclipse. The December 2019 eclipse has quite a lineup in Sagittarius: Sun, Moon, Mercury, Jupiter, Ketu, Saturn and Pluto. It is extremely “weighty” because of this. In regard to a significant eclipse, a Rahu eclipse is often said to reveal more of a positive force than a Ketu eclipse, especially in terms of material conditions. This is not always the case in my experience, though, as Ketu is also a positive force of purva punya or past-life merit. What I have seen is that the Ketu eclipse initially could feel more difficult, as it may require letting go of something and working something out, in which we can be challenged to release something old in order to allow new beginnings to follow. In other words, Ketu causing the eclipse may tend to indicate more losses and stressors than Rahu.

10. Saros Number: Eclipses come in families that are designated by their “Saros Number.” This idea came from the ancient Babylonian astrologers who observed that eclipses occur in families that link together the eclipses that happen every 18 years. These families evolve over cycles that last many centuries (10-15), comprising 80 eclipses in a series. Tracking these cycles is a very specific area of astrological research. The Saros cycle number for the December 2019 eclipse is 132. Astrologer Bernadette Brady labels it S.S. 3 South in her book Predictive Astrology: The Eagle and the Lark (p 312). It began in 1208 and will continue until 2452. The last time we had an eclipse here was in 2001. Brady describes it in her book as signifying “traumatic transformation.”

11. Sage Varahamihira said that an eclipse will impact the health and/or life of people born in the same month as that of the eclipse (especially when the eclipse is in the same nakshatra as the natal Sun). According to Pandit Sanjay Rath (Jyotish Digest 2003), the effect of the eclipse can be felt before or after the eclipse date based on whether the eclipsed luminary is before or after the natal position. If the longitude of the natal Sun is lower than the longitude of the eclipsed Sun, then the health problem or major change in life direction would happen after the eclipse, whereas if the longitude of the natal Sun is higher than the longitude of the eclipsed Sun, the event would happen before the eclipse date. Exact timing will have to be done also with the dasha in the natal chart, but this is an important tool for confirmation. This is applicable only for natal charts where the eclipse (Sun) is in the same nakshatra as the natal Sun.

12. Eclipses have long been associated with geopolitical unrest, and meteorological or seismic phenomenon. An eclipse, whether visible or not, affects the entire world. However, its affect may be stronger, more immediate, or more apparent in areas where the eclipse is visible. As mentioned above, the full eclipse will be visible from Saudi Arabia, southern India, Sri Lanka, and parts of Indonesia, and in the Philippines and Guam; and the partial eclipse will be visible in parts of Europe, Southeast Asia, and North/West Australia.

13. An eclipse is also particularly potent where it aligns with the angular cusps (cardinal points) which include the upper meridian (MC) , lower meridian (IC), descendant (setting), and ascendant (rising). It will be on the upper meridian in Southeast Asia, parts of China, Mongolia, and parts of Russia as in the map right below:

The eclipse is also potent when it is rising (on the ascendant) which will be in parts of Africa, as well as Russia and Turkey. Here you can see where it will be rising:

An eclipse is also potent when it is setting (on the descendant), which seems pretty insignificant this time, as it doesn’t set over any major areas as you can see in the map right below:An eclipse is also potent where it is aligned on the lower meridian (IC), which will occur (as shown in the map below) in parts of South America (Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Columbia, southern Chile); in Central America; in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba; the Bahamas and the Eastern U.S. including North Carolina, and Virginia, Washington D.C., Maryland, New York and parts of New England and into eastern Canada (including through Montreal).

As shown in the map above, Ketu conjoined the IC will bisect New York City, which is of potential concern for some kind of intense “turbulence” ahead, in NYC and/or in the entire U.S. and across the whole planet as well, especially in the second half of February and into early March, when Mars will activate the eclipse points and set off some kind of challenging event that may extend through the second quarter of 2020 and possibly even further on. That potential “turbulence” could be seen in any of the areas where the eclipse is either visible or angular on the MC/IC/ascendant/descendant as shown above. I believe it will be a Black Swan event related to some kind of unforeseen attack and/or a financial panic in New York City, occurring around an event or events the likes of which we have not seen before, perhaps.

14. According to Sage Varahamihira, if the solar eclipse were to occur at the end of the pakña (fortnight) after the lunar eclipse, then the people in general tend to become unruly and unjust and couples quarrel and divorces/separation increase. In the reverse (i.e. the lunar eclipse occurring after the solar eclipse as we have coming up), the Brahmins and priests increase their prayers and people are happy and contented. This same principle can be applied to the interpretation of natal charts in which the Sun is in the same sign as the eclipse.

15. What do eclipses mean astrologically? Simply put, an eclipse is like shining a spotlight on a certain area of the zodiac. If an eclipse aspects planets or sensitive points in the astrological chart of an individual, country, or other entity, matters related to that planet or point will be highlighted for at least the next six months or longer. Often turning points are reached and new revelations come out in the areas of life an eclipse touches. In other words, an eclipse closely aspecting a natal planet or an angular cusp* will cause that planet or point to vibrate at a higher frequency, pointing to some significant internal and external changes. Whether these changes are perceived as “good or bad” depends on the natal significations of that planet or point, as well as aspects, yogas, and dashas. (*The angular cusps are the ascendant/lagna, imum coeli/IC or patala lagna, descendant/asta lagna, or MC/midheaven/madhya lagna).

16. The eclipse of December 2019 will align with the U.S. Kelleher birth chart ascendant, which suggests we are heading toward ever more cultural transformation and more significant changes in societal attitudes. This is even truer as the eclipse occupies Mula nakshatra, whose deity is Nirṛtī, a fierce goddess of destruction. Mula’s shakti is called “bharhana,” the power to break things apart in order to create something new. Ketu is also the planetary ruler of Mula nakshatra and is eclipsing the luminaries, so this suggests that we are in for many surprises, and perhaps some new trends in spiritual and alternative thought.

Yet, American society will remain quite polarized and largely pessimistic, which is also a result of the Rahu Mahadasha cycle (Kelleher U.S. chart, 2015 to 2033), in which Rahu is very malefic in the destructive eighth house in the sign of the public and the homeland (Cancer). There is also extreme polarization worldwide as the lunar nodes are transiting in dual signs (Gemini and Sagittarius); and, this situation was also triggered for the U.S. specifically by the Great American Eclipse in August 2017, which literally and figuratively split the nation in half.

17. I looked back 5,000 years and could not find the exact line-up that we will have this time with Sun, Moon, Mercury, Jupiter, Ketu, Saturn, and Pluto in Sagittarius. However, the last time we had a Sagittarius solar eclipse involving Ketu, Mercury, and Jupiter, sans Saturn and Pluto (as in the eclipse of December 2019) was on December 22, 1889.

This eclipse at the end of 1889 ushered in the decade of the 1890s known as the “Mauve Decade,” named so because of William Henry Perkin’s aniline dye that allowed the widespread use of that color in fashion. The Mauve Decade was also part of the larger “Gilded Age,” a term coined by Mark Twain referring to the outwardly profitable era that was also punctuated by poverty and crime. The Mauve Decade is also specifically thought to have been a time of overall prosperity but also complacency.

In the Roaring Twenties, the Mauve Decade was posthumously dubbed the “Gay Nineties” (or the “Naughty Nineties” in the UK), and refers to the age of social scandals, witty plays and books, licentious art, and the beginning of the suffragette movement. It was also the Age of Immigration, and during this decade, the Industrial Age was already in full swing. At the same time, the economy was also marred by a depression that extended from 1893-96 during the U.S. Kelleher birth chart’s previous Rahu mahadasha.

18. Ketu and Jupiter are transiting together in Sagittarius in November and December 2019, and through much of January 2020. They will make their exact conjunction on January 6 (using the Mean Node calculation), and then will start to separate, but will both remain together in the same sign of Sagittarius through March, and then again during July, August, and into the third week of September. This combination in its more evolved manifestation points to spiritual wisdom and philanthropy, which may be especially so now, as they are conjoined in the buoyant sign of Sagittarius which symbolizes broad vision, ethics, justice, liberty, and humanitarianism. Keep in mind, however, that this conjunction can also cast the very dark shadow of dangerous fanaticism, as in the horoscope of Adolf Hitler who obviously reflected its lower expression.

19. The Jupiter-Ketu conjunction in the eclipse axis and aligned with the U.S. Kelleher birth chart ascendant indicates the possibility of some interesting new trends in spirituality and religion. It was certainly true back in 1889-90 when the Third Great Awakening began, which lasted until 1930. During this period, there was a religious transformation that came about in part due to a growing emphasis on the idea that societal sin trumps personal sin. The belief was that poverty is not the fault of an individual but of society, and thus should be addressed by the state. This created a gradual change to a more secular interpretation of Biblical doctrines.

20. Also in the 1890s, the New Thought alternative philosophy movement began to shift its focus from using the power of the mind to cure disease to using it instead to create material success. This is interesting as Jupiter and his sign of Sagittarius can be said to relate to expansion in the material realm. As Bepin Behari wrote in The Timing of Events: “Jupiter’s role is to assist terrestrial evolution.”

21. And finally, in 1890, and in typical Jupiter-Ketu-Sagittarius fashion, a second wave of the Native American Ghost Dance cult came along during America’s growing western expansion. The Ghost Dance was a spiritual and religious movement that had been taught by Native American prophets in an attempt to rehabilitate their traditional culture. It was believed that the ghosts of the dead would arrive to peacefully oust the white man and restore their old way of life. Proponents of the Ghost Dance believed that, along with their adaptation of a Christian moral code, the dances and songs revealed in trance states by the spirits of the dead would bring back their sovereignty and restore their land. However, it was the Ghost Dances that contributed to Lakota resistance to assimilation under the Dawes Act, and to the shameful Wounded Knee Massacre in December 1890, wherein U.S. Army forces killed at least 153 Miniconjou and Hunkpapa from the Lakota people.

22. An eclipse emblematically represents a time of outer darkness when we are forced to go inside to find the truth. Sedona astrologer Haizen Paige describes eclipses quite beautifully: “The cutting off of the light in an eclipse signals the withdrawal of light from the earth and consequently some area of our consciousness and external life. When there is no light, a situation dies, and then there is a new beginning that takes place. Both the solar and lunar eclipses have a bearing on large chunks of our life: major issues of happiness in life, our sense of aliveness, where we live, what job we’re working in, relationships, and they will sometimes bring up important health issues that we would be unwise to ignore. These areas are highlighted according to the planets and houses where the eclipses land within our chart. A solar eclipse within three degrees of a natal planet is a very big deal, and our consciousness of how we express the energy of that planet is renewed on some level and deepened. If it lands on Venus, the person will experience a deepening of the attitude toward love and marriage, pleasure, comforts and so on, and it will be necessary for one to grow into these new attitudes in order to maintain harmony in life. Just basically, Rahu and Ketu can block the light of the Sun and Moon and thus signal endings and beginnings.”

23. As the New Moon blocks the Sun’s light during a solar eclipse, this can sometimes signal a drop in vitality, especially if the eclipse is directly activating a planet or angular cusp in a natal chart. Solar eclipses can illuminate personal issues which are draining vital energy, so the months preceding and following a solar eclipse are a time for examining and letting go of (or being released from) anything that hinders soul growth. When a solar eclipse conjoins a natal planet or angular cusp, an important new cycle is at hand in that area represented by that planet, sign, and house. It suggests an important new emphasis.

24. Unless an eclipse occurs close to a significant natal or mundane chart placement, very little activity may be connected with it. If on the other hand, a planetary or chart point is activated near the degree of an eclipse, it may be connected to various dynamic events.

25.  The eclipse is considered to be a sacred time, particularly around the time of the eclipse. Meditation and spiritual devotion can be particularly significant during an eclipse. It is said that the benefits of all contemplative practices performed around the eclipse time will be tremendously magnified.

26.  “Eclipses operate more forcibly on Cities, Provinces, and Kingdoms than on Particular persons of private condition, or even upon Kings and princes, for their effects rather respect the multitude” (From the aphorisms of Jerom Cardan (1501-1576) as printed in Anima Astrologia). In other words, many believe that eclipses are more important in mundane than natal astrology and particularly financial astrology.

26. Often an eclipse that triggers the Sun, Moon or ascendant in a native’s chart can foretell a rise in power. For instance, George W. Bush was elected President on November 7, 2000. That year, in late July, a partial solar eclipse conjoined his natal ascendant and his first house stellium. It was a Rahu eclipse, which brought expansion, a change in his identity, and some newly acquired confidence. At the same time, Mars was transiting over natal Saturn in the eclipse axis, so the eclipse carried within it a martial seed for what was to come in the Bush administration (such as the invasion of Iraq). The Mars eclipse energy also points to the battle that occurred after the election when it was unclear who had won, with the electoral votes of the state of Florida still undecided. The returns showed that Bush had won Florida by such a close margin that state law required a recount. A month-long series of legal battles led to the contentious, 5–4 Supreme Court decision of Bush v. Gore, which ended the recount.

27. An eclipse can indicate a crisis or it can reveal something auspicious, and sometimes it brings both highs and lows. This is something you would need to consult an astrologer about in order to understand it more specifically. In general though, when benefics are involved in an eclipse, as in the December 1889 and 2019 eclipses (involving Mercury and Jupiter), the lucky benefic energy is usually magnified by the lunar nodes. And keep in mind that Ketu is not always the cause of loss and dissipation, as so many astrologers believe. It is also one of the planets that represents purva punya, the fortunate karmas earned through past life merit, as I also had mentioned earlier.

28. The last thing I wanted to say about the December 2019 solar eclipse chart is related to the harmonious trine from Uranus in Aries to the Sagittarius eclipse stellium. Uranus is the Awakener who activates innovative and intuitive insights and new revelations and discoveries. This may also signify what I have been forecasting for the past year related to more ET/UFO disclosure in 2020. No matter what it is, I pray that justice and truth will ultimately prevail!

With love and light from Juliana