It can mark a time of stress in a person’s life, and because of the general view of the planetary phenomenon—during which Mercury appears to move backward from the Earth’s view—beginner astrology enthusiasts have become more and more aware of it. However, Mercury isn’t the only planet that retrogrades. In fact, all planets do as well as a few comets like Halley’s Comet and Chiron.
In the month of August, four planets will regrade, particularly outer planets like Uranus, which joins already retrograde planets Saturn, Neptune, Pluto and the comet Chiron, on August 12. This comes just after Jupiter wraps its lengthy retrograde the day before.
While having so many planets in retrograde at the same time may seem intense, the outer planets don’t bring the same type of personal impact people experience like when Mercury, Mars or Venus retrogrades. That’s likely because the outer planets don’t orbit as quickly and they’re just about always in retrograde—often for half the year—according to professional astrologer and writer Jessica Lanyadoo.
“Jupiter through Pluto, they’re just slow-moving planets. When they retrograde, it’s not something you’re going to feel objectively in the same way that you feel Mercury or Venus or with Mars,” Lanyadoo told Newsweek..
Whereas Mercury is a planet of communication and information that rules the sign of Gemini—hence why instances of humans’ daily lives tend to be on the fritz when the planet is retrograde—Uranus is a bit more elusive and is associated with more unseen aspects of life that usually bring on society-wide change. Uranus rules the sign of Aquarius—a sign of intelligence and open thinking—resulting in its more forward-thinking prowess. So while people won’t feel the effects of Uranus’ retrograde individually, it still marks a moment of observation on a much broader scale, especially since Uranus is transitioning into the sign of Taurus.
“What we really wanna lookout for more is society trends. That’s where we’re gonna get useful information,” Lanyadoo said. “With Uranus in Taurus, this transit represents a time of revolution and major change in the role of women in society, in the role of currencies and economy and also how we relate to others. Who we value as a society and who we chose to throw away. All of these things are being called to change, and that’s not specific to a retrograde, it’s really specific to the transit itself.”
Lanyadoo encouraged astrology followers to use the outer planet retrogrades in the same manner as she suggests for Mercury and the others by following the three “re’s”: Reevaluating, reassessing and reanalyzing. She also said the Uranus and outer planet retrogrades mark a good time to take a look at history and note the similarities to what’s happening across the globe today.
“The last time that Uranus transited through the sign of Taurus, we had Hitler. We had Mussolini. Not chill. We had a lot of wars happening. When we look at the historical context of different transits we can see a reiteration of the prison industrial complex. We can see the systemic reiterations of racism or misogyny. These are things are historically trackable,” she said.
Although the outer planet retrogrades aren’t expected to have specific individual impacts, the transition from Leo season to the sign of Virgo at the end of August will call attention to how people are feeling and various situations, astrologer Lisa Stardust told Newsweek. She suggested folks spend time journaling and expressing their emotions on paper.
“When we come to Virgo season, we’re really going to be discussing how sure we are of certain circumstances and reevaluating what’s happening and what’s really worth our attention,” she said.
Simply put, the four-planet retrograde is all about monitoring the sign of the times.
“Astrology is definitely a way to chart and understand trends whether those trends are economic, social or personal,” Lanyadoo said. “When we see retrogrades with the outer planets occurring we have the opportunity to really notice and reflect on and reframe how we are participating and whether or not it’s working.”
