Astrological Highlights: February 16 - 22, 2026
Aquarius Solar Eclipse, Saturn/Neptune Conjunction, Hello to the Fire Horse, and More...
It’s a star-studded week! With so much going on, this week’s missive is longer than usual. I’ve added subject headings to make it easier to read and reflect upon.
Aquarius New Moon Solar Eclipse
This month’s New Moon—occurring on February 17—is also a Solar Eclipse. Even if we can’t see an Eclipse in the sky where we live, these celestial events are renowned for being very powerful in the way in which they can impact our lives. Oftentimes, life-changing events or reflections occur around the time of an Eclipse.
Yet, remember that reflective of the word itself, things are often “eclipsed” or obscured around the time of Eclipses. As such, you may find yourself feeling that there is a sea change in your life, and/or on the world stage, that new seeds are being planted and yet not clear what fruits they will yield. That is just as it should be.
Be open to the shifts you feel within, yet don’t press for premature definition of where they will lead. More clarity should emerge weeks from now when Eclipse Season is in our rear-view mirror (the next in this series of Eclipses occurs on March 3).
As the Solar Eclipse is in Aquarius, on a collective level, we’re focused upon social progress, humanitarian concerns, and the role that technology plays in both enhancing, and stifling, our freedom. Personally, we can reflect upon the roles we want to play in our community that will help make the world a better place.
The New Moon Solar Eclipse makes a square to Uranus, the modern-day ruler of Aquarius. With this, we may find that detours and pivots play important functions in allowing us to garner fresh perspectives. Be open to surprises, considering that things may emerge that were not on your proverbial bingo card (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). All the while, Stay Bouncy!
The Year of the Fire Horse
Each year on the Aquarius New Moon we also meet the Chinese Lunar New Year. This one honors the Fire Horse, signaling unbridled movement, bold action, and a yearning for freedom. All the while, we want to watch for a heightened propensity for impatience and restlessness. How to propel ourselves with awareness, unite our spirit and spunk with decisiveness and consciousness, feels like an invitation of this year.
Venus Unites with the North Node
Also, on Tuesday, Venus comes together with the North Node in Pisces. We may find ourselves more open to the soulfulness inherent in relationships, whether with a lover, potential partner, friend, or another. We could even sense that a chance encounter with a stranger adds something magical to our lives. Themes of grace, devotion, and the transcendence of love may seem more apparent. It’s also a moment in which we may find we’re able to tap into a deeper level of artistry if we allow our egos to step aside and just see what flows through us. Allow yourself to find heart-felt inspiration through music, artwork, and dance.
Pisces Season Begins
On February 18, the Sun floats into Pisces, signaling a month in which we may feel more apt to swim in oceans of emotions. We’re drawn to the soft and round rather than the hard and linear. A sense of interconnectedness emerges as we realize that we’re not as separate from others as we often perceive. And with this, compassion, empathy, and forgiveness can flourish.
Saturn/Neptune Conjunction: Overview
The Saturn/Neptune Conjunction, occurring on February 20, is the celestial meet-up everyone’s been talking about for a while. Every 36 years, the planet of form (Saturn) unites with the planet of formlessness (Neptune). As it does, it marks a burgeoning of a new collective chapter in which we’re called to navigate the relationship between time and timelessness, bounds and boundarylessness, what’s likely and what’s possible, and the rational and the imaginative.
To navigate Saturn and Neptune, it feels important to allow ourselves to dream, to tap into our heart, and to be open to the imaginal and intuitive that resides within us. As we do, we can see what ideas and inspirations comes forth. From there, we can apply a rational framework of accounting to each to see which one/s pencil out, which one/s we can bring into form, architecting vessels that allow us to manifest these visions.
Saturn/Neptune Conjunction: Previous Ones
Recent Saturn/Neptune Conjunctions have correlated with the seeding of striking world-wide movements. Associated with the 1989 one were such events as the Tiananmen Square protests, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the release of Nelson Mandela from jail (and the subsequent dismantling of the apartheid system in South Africa). The one before that was in 1952/1953 and accorded with events such as the death of Joseph Stalin, the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, both the peak and the collapse of McCarthyism, and the discovery of the DNA structure.
And the one before that, in 1917, was a period that featured the Russian Revolution, the U.S. entering World War I, and events that led to the dissolution of the German, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman Empires. Also, that year featured what was known as The Apparitions of Fatima, when three children in a Portuguese town recounted sightings of the Virgin Mary. This led to an event known as the Miracle of the Sun, in which thousands gathered to look for a public sign—including unusual movements of the Sun, as many reported—of the Virgin Mary in their midst. All so very Saturn/Neptune!
Saturn/Neptune Conjunction: Current One
Each Saturn/Neptune Conjunction takes place in a different zodiacal spot. This current one takes place at quite a striking place: in the very first sign (Aries) in the very primary location (0 degrees). And with this, the special themes that may emerge may include our collective relationship to battles, fire, martial activities, guns and weapons, pioneering efforts, initiations, and connection to our desires. I imagine what will also emerge is our understanding of how to relate with our instinctive nature as well as the benefits and challenges of patience and impatience.
Invariably, it will inspire the will to fight and ideally teach us how to constructively channel anger and rage. Reflecting that, I wanted to share this clip of Michelle Obama from an episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as I love what she said about sourcing and expressing rage:
“For me, going high is not losing the urgency or the passion or the rage, especially when you are justified in it. Going high mean finding the purpose in your rage. You know, rage without reason, without a plan, without direction, is just more rage. And we’ve been living in a lot of rage. And why do we go high? Because the opposite way of being is unsustainable.”
(She speaks about this at about the 16:00 minute mark.)
Finding purpose in our rage, connecting it with reason, a plan, and direction feels like an encouragement that we can distill both from the Saturn/Neptune Conjunction in Aries and the Year of the Fire Horse.
Wishing you all my best,
Including in this star-studded week,
xxStephanie
Astrological Highlights
February 16: Sun/Uranus Square; Mercury/Jupiter Trine
February 17: Aquarius New Moon Solar Eclipse; Venus/North Node Conjunction
February 18: Sun enters Pisces
February 20: Saturn/Neptune Conjunction
February 22: Venus/Jupiter Trine
All days reflect Eastern Standard Time (UTC -5)
Photos: Wayee Tan, Andrej Lisakov, and Allec Gomes via Unsplash
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Navigating a life transition? Wanting to find ways to enhance and channel your creativity? Curious what the Eclipses, Saturn/Neptune Conjunction, and other current astrological factors are inspiring for you personally?
If so, I’d love to do a Stellar Guidance Session with you. You can read more about my work on my website, or reach out to me with questions.
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