October Skygazing 🪐

Hello skygazers!

It’s astounding… time is fleeting!

But some might say the best time of the year is here, and I might agree. Here in the Northern Hemisphere, Autumn & Winter skies are less hazy, making them some of the clearest skies you’ll ever see! This is also the time of year when beloved constellations like Taurus & Orion make their return in the East. Stay up late enough this week & you can even catch a sneak preview.

When the sun sets tonight, on this first day of October, our Moon is nowhere near new. Rather, we begin the month near the midpoint of the lunar cycle - Full Moon time - and our glowing satellite will be nearly 70% illuminated, floating between the constellations Sagittarius & Capricornus.

To follow Moon through the constellations is a meaningful practice.

To follow Moon through the spirit realms of the solar year, is another.

Meet the waxing gibbous moon tonight, and the two zodiacal star groups that frame it, and know this: you are meeting the 1st degree of Tropical Aquarius. Have a telescope? You might even meet Pluto.

Remember, there are 3 astronomical motions of Earth. Rotation, Revolution, & Precession. The third motion, precession, is the slow wobble of Earth, like a spinning top that never ceases to swirl. Because of this slow wobble, the alignment of Equinoxes & Solstices as they are measured from Earth will only align with the constellations they are named after, every 26,000 years.

Thus, constellations in our day and age do not represent the realms of the tropical solar zodiac. What has remained the same, are the points along the horizons. The spirit of each sign. Sacred sites maintain this divine natural magic. Stonehenge, Serpent Mound, Chichén Itzá. Take your pick.

So, the Sun at Libra Equinox is not found in the constellation of Libra, rather what continues to be measurable & true, is that the Sun rises due east & sets due west, glowing into the very same tunnels & across the same stones that it has since the Neolithic period. Today, in the year 2025, Libra is the constellation you will see over the western horizon as dusk gives way to night.

There is no debate here about what is “right”. Both star-based & spirit-based systems serve their purposes. Both are accurate & inspiring. Watch the Moon pass the stars of Capricorn in the coming nights just after sunset, glimmering in the southern sky near bright stars like Deneb Algedi, and know that this is the spirit realm of Aquarius. I say spirit realm, because it cannot be seen, less you are following the Sun. It is an imprint. A memory. A cosmic reminder of the zodiacal archetypes which guide us through our solar year.

What questions do you have? Take them to the night sky.

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Until now, I’ve been creating a digital calendar graphic for you to download & keep handy, but today I had this feeling.. creating the calendar is a fun artistic practice that I enjoy, but it is not just the finished product I want to share - it is the very making of the thing! Even if you do not feel “artistically inclined”, this is still a fun way to build something with your hands. So I’m going to outline the lunar phase details here and leave it to you to craft a special page in your field notes, journal, or sketchbook. :)

Monday 10/6 : Full Moon (14* Aries) (Fire) (Martian Moon)
Monday 10/13 : Last Quarter Moon (20* Cancer) (Water) (Lunar Moon)
Tuesday 10/21 : New Moon (28* Libra) (Air) (Venusian Moon)
Wednesday 10/29 : First Quarter Moon (6* Aquarius) (Air) (Saturnian Moon)

Sunday 10/5 : Moon conjunct Saturn (27* Pisces)
Monday 10/13 : Moon conjunct Jupiter (23* Cancer)
Sunday 10/19 : Moon conjunct Venus (7* Libra)
Thursday 10/23 : Moon conjunct Mars & Mercury (21* / 23* Scorpio)

{View each conjunction below - note the direction at center & the time in the bottom right corner}

Currently, the lunar nodes (our two abstract eclipse points where the orbital path of the earth intersects the orbital path of the moon) can be found in the realms of Pisces (the North node) & Virgo (the South node). This means that when the Moon is traveling from Pisces to Virgo, it will be found above the ecliptic. When Moon travels from Virgo to Pisces, it will be found below the ecliptic. The Moon snakes along, crossing the North Node, the North Bending, the South Node, the South Bending, and then the cycle repeats ~

So why would we want to know about this? Let’s say you want to plan a trip to see the Moon set on the 23rd while it is within Scorpio’s realm, found between Virgo & Pisces. Maybe you’re looking forward to seeing that trio of inner wanderers at dusk. Well, on that day, as sunlight fades, how likely is it that you will see a celestial body that is lower/closer to the horizon?

Let’s look at this photo again.

Imagine how the experience would differ if the waxing crescent was above the red line marking the ecliptic path.

I want to leave you with the link for the American Meteor Society calendar, which has a heap of information that is, to be candid, pointless for me to summarize! Check out the details for the Orionids & Taurids which are coming up soon.

And as always, if there was something you’d like to hear more about, feedback is appreciated. I’m working on quite a few things here in the Moon Den that I look forward to actually manifesting in the real world with you all. Until then..

Wishing you clear skies !!

~ Alyssa