July 2009 Eclipse: Saros 110 and Details

The July 2009 Eclipse (7/7/09 full moon lunar eclipse) repeats the saros 110 pattern. For the related meditation/ritual, see Moon in Capricorn Rituals and Meditations: July 2009

Eclipses have repetitive patterns, if you know where to look. Understanding these patterns and how they parallel one another can be useful in figuring out what’s going on in your life and where to put your attention now.

Eclipses are like windows opening and closing. They represent phases and completions and new beginnings. Of course, we’re always shifting in and out of different phases of growth, so this is no surprise. But you can get an idea of which phase is shutting down (and preparing to open up in a different way) by looking at previous eclipses.

Lunar eclipses move in different cycles, Saros and Metonic. My wording isn’t precise, so bear with me as I try to explain this eclipse in terms that can be understood by other non-astronomers.

A Saros cycle is 18 years, 11 days, and 8 hours long. The 7 July 2009 eclipse is part of a longer set of 72 eclipses, Saros series #110, spanning 1280 years from 747 to 2027.

This eclipse occurs July 7, 2009, 3:33 to 5:44 AM Central time here in West Florida, though I won't see it here. This penumbral lunar eclipse is almost invisible everywhere, in fact. It's the first of a rare three eclipses in the July-August 2009 time frame; normally eclipses come in twos every six months, not threes. The next one, a total solar eclipse on July 22, 2009, will be a different matter.

This is a rather gentle eclipse astrologically and a rather "unimportant" eclipse astronomically. This eclipse occurs at 15 degrees Capricorn, the Sabian symbol of "In a hospital, the children's ward is filled with toys." That's an interesting thought to meditate on! The idea of this point of your life being in that hospital (a negative normally) but at the same time, there are lots of toys--joy, opportunities, positives. To me, the child looks more to the fun of the toys than his surroundings, and once he does, the surroundings are forgotten for the moment.

For a better idea of where this July 2009 Eclipse will most affect your life, look at your astrological chart to see where which planets you have that are between 13 and 17 degrees Capricorn. For more understanding on what it means if you have an eclipse conjunction with one of the planets in your chart, review Eclipse Conjunction: A Pluto-Like Effect on your Planets.

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