HudsonGray
I found this in our Sunday paper, and it's online too, but the news sites regularly take things off after a week so I'm posting it here in it's entirety. Rose Darby is looking at how the new planet and it's moon, Xena and Gabrielle, just found recently in our solar system, may affect horoscopes.
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NEWLY CHARTED TERRITORY --- With the discovery of a new "planet" in our solar system, some people may wonder: Will this affect my horoscope?
By Rose Darby
XENA FACTS
Size: about 2,500 km
Discovered: Jan. 8, 2005
Description: dark, cold
Moons: at least one (Gabrielle)
Last summer, a group of astronomers announced the discovery of a large, round object on the fringes of our solar system and nicknamed it "Xena," after the popular TV heroine. In October, the same scientists from the California Institute of Technology found a dim moon orbiting Xena. At 20% larger than Pluto, Xena, which will get a permanent name later, has all the makings of a real planet. But just as its TV alter ego wasn't always recognized as a full warrior, the heavenly Xena has yet to be declared a planet -- a matter of heated debate in the astronomical community.
Still, one group of stargazers is ready to give Xena its due. Astrologers, the practitioners behind your trusted weekly horoscopes in the newspaper, are abuzz about how this new heavenly body could affect their craft. Would the addition of a new planet debunk traditional horoscopes and predictions? Could you think you're a Scorpio today, then learn tomorrow that Xena ruled your chart all along? Some of astrology's brightest minds weigh in on these questions and more for USA WEEKEND, and their answers may surprise you.
The rule of the planets ----
Generally considered more of an art than a science, astrology maintains that the positions of the planets, the moon and the sun influence our lives. Each of the 12 signs in the zodiac (the word comes from the Greek, meaning "little animals or creatures") is "ruled" by a specific planet and influenced by that planet's given qualities. For example, Taurus is ruled by Venus, which, as its name suggests, represents love and beauty. And Aries is ruled by Mars, which stands for confidence and aggression, after its namesake Roman god of war.
An astrological chart, which you can purchase from a practitioner, is a personalized map of the heavens at the time of your birth, which is then compared with a map of today's sky. The angles and relationships that form within and between objects in the two charts take on personal significance. "As planets move through a chart, they either get along with one another and create opportunities for us, or they're at odds and create challenges," says Susan Miller, founder of AstrologyZone.com and a columnist for the "New York Daily News."
Astrologers believe that as the planets move, these "personality clashes" reverberate into the individual charts. "We are all part of a vast, organic system," says Michael Lutin, horoscope writer for "Vanity Fair." "We connect the changes in us to what takes place in the planets and vice versa."
A new player in the game ---
How could the new discovery alter your destiny? For starters, it won't bump you from Aquarius to Gemini. "Adding a new planet does not change your sign. Your sign depends on where the sun was at the time of your birth," Miller says. But depending on what personality traits Xena rules, the additional planet could add a fiery or sedate element, for instance, to your forecast.
A big factor in determining a planet's disposition is what was happening in the world when it was discovered. "Uranus was found around the time of the American and French revolutions, and it symbolizes freedom and individuality," says Bill Meridian, Wall Street's resident astrologer, who uses the charts to predict stock and financial trends. Similarly, Pluto's discovery in 1930 coincided with the rise of fascism in Europe, and Pluto is associated with transformation, extreme power and corruption.
So Xena could represent a shifting interpretation of gender roles, Lutin says. "It could represent changes in human reproduction, such as what's going on in stem cell research and cloning."
A planet's name also plays into its qualities (think: Venus and Mars). The International Astronomical Union, based in Paris, will determine the title of the new discovery. It likely won't be Xena, although it's hard to imagine a more fitting name for a being that challenges gender roles.
As Xena enters your sign ...
Either way, Xena may not affect your weekly predictions. It's so far from the sun that it's more likely to rule long-term cycles, such as sociological, religious and governmental trends, than day-to-day life events. "Venus moves through your sign in less than a month because it's so close, whereas Pluto can take 14 to 25 years," Miller says. The longer a planet stays in your sign or in your chart, the more it has the time to make its presence known. Which explains why Xena, at about 100 times Earth's distance from the Sun, may have a formidable influence on society. That's a powerful force and one worth getting to know.
Xena's message ----
Figuring out Xena's full influence could take years, but as of now, its message seems to be one of new awareness and harmony. "It gives us the opportunity to deepen our understanding," says Shelley Ackerman, noted newspaper astrologer and BeliefNet contributor, "at a time when it is imperative that we change course and learn to accept one another."
--------------------------------
NEWLY CHARTED TERRITORY --- With the discovery of a new "planet" in our solar system, some people may wonder: Will this affect my horoscope?
By Rose Darby
XENA FACTS
Size: about 2,500 km
Discovered: Jan. 8, 2005
Description: dark, cold
Moons: at least one (Gabrielle)
Last summer, a group of astronomers announced the discovery of a large, round object on the fringes of our solar system and nicknamed it "Xena," after the popular TV heroine. In October, the same scientists from the California Institute of Technology found a dim moon orbiting Xena. At 20% larger than Pluto, Xena, which will get a permanent name later, has all the makings of a real planet. But just as its TV alter ego wasn't always recognized as a full warrior, the heavenly Xena has yet to be declared a planet -- a matter of heated debate in the astronomical community.
Still, one group of stargazers is ready to give Xena its due. Astrologers, the practitioners behind your trusted weekly horoscopes in the newspaper, are abuzz about how this new heavenly body could affect their craft. Would the addition of a new planet debunk traditional horoscopes and predictions? Could you think you're a Scorpio today, then learn tomorrow that Xena ruled your chart all along? Some of astrology's brightest minds weigh in on these questions and more for USA WEEKEND, and their answers may surprise you.
The rule of the planets ----
Generally considered more of an art than a science, astrology maintains that the positions of the planets, the moon and the sun influence our lives. Each of the 12 signs in the zodiac (the word comes from the Greek, meaning "little animals or creatures") is "ruled" by a specific planet and influenced by that planet's given qualities. For example, Taurus is ruled by Venus, which, as its name suggests, represents love and beauty. And Aries is ruled by Mars, which stands for confidence and aggression, after its namesake Roman god of war.
An astrological chart, which you can purchase from a practitioner, is a personalized map of the heavens at the time of your birth, which is then compared with a map of today's sky. The angles and relationships that form within and between objects in the two charts take on personal significance. "As planets move through a chart, they either get along with one another and create opportunities for us, or they're at odds and create challenges," says Susan Miller, founder of AstrologyZone.com and a columnist for the "New York Daily News."
Astrologers believe that as the planets move, these "personality clashes" reverberate into the individual charts. "We are all part of a vast, organic system," says Michael Lutin, horoscope writer for "Vanity Fair." "We connect the changes in us to what takes place in the planets and vice versa."
A new player in the game ---
How could the new discovery alter your destiny? For starters, it won't bump you from Aquarius to Gemini. "Adding a new planet does not change your sign. Your sign depends on where the sun was at the time of your birth," Miller says. But depending on what personality traits Xena rules, the additional planet could add a fiery or sedate element, for instance, to your forecast.
A big factor in determining a planet's disposition is what was happening in the world when it was discovered. "Uranus was found around the time of the American and French revolutions, and it symbolizes freedom and individuality," says Bill Meridian, Wall Street's resident astrologer, who uses the charts to predict stock and financial trends. Similarly, Pluto's discovery in 1930 coincided with the rise of fascism in Europe, and Pluto is associated with transformation, extreme power and corruption.
So Xena could represent a shifting interpretation of gender roles, Lutin says. "It could represent changes in human reproduction, such as what's going on in stem cell research and cloning."
A planet's name also plays into its qualities (think: Venus and Mars). The International Astronomical Union, based in Paris, will determine the title of the new discovery. It likely won't be Xena, although it's hard to imagine a more fitting name for a being that challenges gender roles.
As Xena enters your sign ...
Either way, Xena may not affect your weekly predictions. It's so far from the sun that it's more likely to rule long-term cycles, such as sociological, religious and governmental trends, than day-to-day life events. "Venus moves through your sign in less than a month because it's so close, whereas Pluto can take 14 to 25 years," Miller says. The longer a planet stays in your sign or in your chart, the more it has the time to make its presence known. Which explains why Xena, at about 100 times Earth's distance from the Sun, may have a formidable influence on society. That's a powerful force and one worth getting to know.
Xena's message ----
Figuring out Xena's full influence could take years, but as of now, its message seems to be one of new awareness and harmony. "It gives us the opportunity to deepen our understanding," says Shelley Ackerman, noted newspaper astrologer and BeliefNet contributor, "at a time when it is imperative that we change course and learn to accept one another."
