The Great Celestial Conjunction
The solar system’s two biggest planets come within the planetary kissing range.
The evening sky over the Northern Hemisphere treated stargazers to a once-in-a-lifetime rare spectacle on Monday as the solar system’s two biggest planets appeared to meet in a celestial alignment that astronomers call the “Great Conjunction” popularly referred to as the "Christmas Star" – a planetary intimacy that will not occur again until 2080.
For those able to observe the alignment in clear skies, the two frozen-gas spheres appeared closer and more vibrant – almost as a single point of light – than at any time in 800 years even though they were, in fact, more than 730 million kilometers (400 million miles) apart.
And while the conjunction happened on the same day as the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year (21st December), the timing is merely a coincidence, based on the convergence of the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn and the tilt of the Earth.
In 1610, Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei pointed his telescope to the night sky, discovering the four moons of Jupiter – Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. In that same year, Galileo also discovered a strange oval surrounding Saturn, which later observations determined to be its rings. These discoveries changed how people understood the far reaches of our solar system.
Thirteen years later, in 1623, the solar system’s two giant planets, Jupiter and Saturn, traveled together across the sky. Jupiter caught up to and passed Saturn, in an astronomical event known as a “Great Conjunction.” but weather conditions in regions where the event could be seen blocked the view.
Visibility was apparently better the time before that, long before telescopes were invented, in 1226, halfway through the construction of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris.
Jupiter, which is the largest planet in the solar system, takes 11.9 years to revolve around the Sun, while Saturn takes 29.5 years. The planets regularly appear to pass each other in the solar system, with the positions of Jupiter and Saturn being aligned in the sky about once every 20 years. The next Great Conjunction between the two planets – although not nearly as close together – is due in November 2040. An alignment similar to Monday’s will not take place until March 2080.
What makes this year’s spectacle so rare, then?
It’s been nearly 400 years since the planets passed this close to each other in the sky, and nearly 800 years since the alignment of Saturn and Jupiter occurred at night, allowing nearly everyone around the world to witness this “great conjunction.”
Most great conjunctions are not particularly notable. But occasionally, like this year, Jupiter and Saturn crossed paths so close to each other that they were noticeably distinguishable to the naked eye. Or sometimes the two planets cross paths when they are opposite the Sun, so their apparent retrograde motion results in triple conjunction, as was the case in 7 BCE.
In 1604, while he was working in Prague, Kepler observed the tight arrangement of three planets — Mars, Saturn, and Jupiter — and a bright new star, a supernova, that would slowly fade over the course of a year. This occurrence inspired him to consider a similar set of events that might have led the wise men to Bethlehem in time for Jesus Christ’s birth. Knowing that Herod the Great had died in 4 BCE, he placed the birth of Christ before that date. And using his knowledge of planetary motion, he found that Jupiter and Saturn underwent triple conjunction in 7 BCE, that conjunctions of Mars with each planet in 6 BCE were shortly followed by conjunctions of the planets with the Sun. Kepler suggested that these solar conjunctions aligned with the conception of Christ and that the wise men arrived the following year to witness Christ’s birth beneath the Star of Bethlehem.
Besides its visual dazzle, this event has special significance through the astrological lens: it marks the official shift from a 200 year period during which Jupiter and Saturn made conjunctions primarily in Earth signs into a 200 year period of conjunctions in Air signs, marking the advent of a new epoch in a larger 800-year macro-cycle.
Jupiter and Saturn are the slowest and furthest away of the planets available to the naked human eye, and function as the shorter hands of the astrological clock, sketching the broad strokes of an era.
In astrological terms, Jupiter signifies expansion, growth, and coherence – but can also lead to cancerous hypertrophy.
Saturn represents the opposite principle, of limitation, structure, and containment, often considered the cruel taskmaster of the zodiac. Together they are like life and death, warp and weft, and their conjunctions signal key moments in the formation of collective reality.
Historically, Earth periods like the one we are about to exit focus on materialism, hierarchies, resource acquisition, territory control, and empire stabilisation (see the late Roman empire, high middle ages, and industrial capitalism). Air periods, by contrast, favor the renovation of hierarchies, decentralisation, shifting orders, rapid translation, mass mobility, trade networks, and rampant spirituality. Relevant historical examples include the rise and fall of Alexander the Great’s empire leading to the network of city-states in the Greek-speaking Hellenistic world (Air period 383-185 BCE), the fall of the Roman empire (Air period 412-610 CE), the division of the Mongol empire after Ghengis Khan’s death, and the Black plague’s destabilizing effect on feudalism in Europe (Air period 1206-1405). Thematically, Air periods tend to foster information ages that focus on the intellectual, the immaterial, and the ideological – though not necessarily in a peaceful manner.
Speculating on the current transition, what kind of shifts can we anticipate, may follow? One is a move from key social conflicts over physical territory to struggles in the psychological and ideological realms. Astrologers suggest the game will be “up in the air” rather than “all too dense”. That means mass migration and decentralization of power seem likely, as well as radical technological advancement.
As for your own experience: don’t panic. Elements are traditionally neutral, which means going from a period typified by one to a period typified by another doesn’t spell disaster. Epochal shifts are part of life, though not everyone has the privilege of living through one like this since they only happen every 200 years. You may keep your eyes peeled for changes but don’t expect everything to update all at once – the Air period may be upon us, but certain heavenly revolutions are a slow burn, indeed!
(pics have been taken from the net)
