The Solar System and Planetary Movement

Question 1

How long does the Sun stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 1

About 30 days in each sign
One year to complete zodiac cycle

Question 2

How long does the Moon stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 2

About 2.5 days in each sign
28 days to complete zodiac cycle

Question 3

How long does the Mercury stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 3

About 14 days-30 days in each sign, depending on its motion
About 1 year to complete zodiac cycle

Question 4

How long does the Venus stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 4

About 23 days-2 months in each sign
About 9 months - 2 years to complete zodiac cycle

Question 5

How long does the Mars stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 5

About 1.5-2 months in each sign
About 18-24 months (almost 2 years) to complete zodiac cycle

Question 6

How long does the Jupiter stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 6

About 1 year in each sign
About 12 years to complete zodiac cycle

Question 7

How long does the Saturn stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 7

About 2.5 years in each sign
About 28-30 years to complete zodiac cycle

Question 8

How long does the Uranus stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 8

About 7 years in each sign
About 84 years to complete zodiac cycle

Question 9

How long does the Neptune stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 9

About 14 years in each sign
About 165 years to complete zodiac cycle

Question 10

How long does the Pluto stay in each zodiac sign and how long does it take to complete the zodiac cycle?

Answer 10

About 12-31 years in each sign
About 248 years to complete zodiac cycle

Question 11

Why isn’t a planet’s time spent in a zodiac sign always exact?

Answer 11

Retrograde and elliptical patterns

Question 12

What does it mean when a planet is retrograde?

Answer 12

A planet is retrograde when it appears to be moving backward in the sky. Retrogrades happen as Earth is passing or being passed by other planets.

Question 13

How does a retrograde planet affect your personal birth chart?

Answer 13

If you have planets in retrograde in your natal chart, you may find that you have to work a little harder in the areas that the planet governs.

Question 14

Do all planets go retrograde?

Answer 14

All planets go retrograde at some point except the sun and moon.

Question 15

How often and how long does Mercury go retrograde?

Answer 15

3-4 times per year for 3 weeks each

Question 16

How often and how long does Venus go retrograde?

Answer 16

Every 18 months for 6 weeks

Question 17

How often and how long does Mars go retrograde?

Answer 17

Every 2 years for 4 months

Question 18

How often and how long does Jupiter go retrograde?

Answer 18

Annually for 4 months

Question 19

How often and how long does Saturn go retrograde?

Answer 19

Annually for 5 months

Question 20

How often and how long does Uranus go retrograde?

Answer 20

Annually for 5 months

Question 21

How often and how long does Neptune go retrograde?

Answer 21

Annually for 5 months

Question 22

How often and how long does Pluto go retrograde?

Answer 22

Annually for 5 months

Question 23

How do retrograde planets affect us astrologically?

Answer 23

Retrograde motion causes disruption in the sign and house that the planet is transitting in the areas that the planet rules.

Question 24

What is a solar eclipse and when do they occur?

Answer 24

When the moon partially or totally covers the sun.

Solar eclipses can only occur during a New Moon when the Moon moves between Earth and the Sun, and the three celestial bodies form a straight line: Earth–Moon–Sun.

There are between two and five solar eclipses every year.

Question 25

What is a lunar eclipse and when do they occur?

Answer 25

When the earth’s shadow partially or totally covers the moon.

Lunar eclipses only happen at full moon. The Moon does not have its own light. It shines because its surface reflects the Sun’s rays. A lunar eclipse occurs when Earth comes between the Sun and the Moon and blocks the Sun’s rays from directly reaching the Moon.

Question 26

What does the sun tell you on a clock/calendar?

Answer 26

The hour of the day

Question 27

What does the moon tell you on a clock/calendar?

Answer 27

The day of the month

Question 28

What acts as a fixed backdrop through which all orbiting planets move?

Answer 28

Zodiac signs or constellations (signs do not move but rather the earth rotates giving the appearance of moving signs in the birth chart)

Question 29

Why isn’t a planet’s time spent in a zodiac sign always exact?

Answer 29

Retrograde and elliptical patterns

Question 30

What two planets are never more than two signs away from the sun in a birth chart?

Answer 30

Mercury and Venus

Question 31

What does the zodiac tell you on a clock/calendar?

Answer 31

The month of the year

Question 32

What is the declination of a planet and what does it mean when a planet is out of bounds?

Answer 32

The distance between a planet’s current position and the earth’s equator (as projected into the sky). Planets travel in a 360-degree circle around the Sun, but they do not constantly stay at the same latitude; they continually move up and down.

A planet is considered out of bounds when its declination is beyond the outer bounds or limits of that of the Sun, i.e. greater than 23 degrees and 27 minutes of declination, either North or South.