(17 February 2013) Friday’s astonishing meteor strike over central Russia has left many people wondering just what it all might mean. Is this meteor related to the asteroid that is due to narrowly miss Earth in a few days? Is this meteor a warning of something more serious down the road? And perhaps more related to astrology, what meaning should we humans take from this would-be heavenly omen? In my view, the answers to these questions are: nothing, not necessarily and probably nothing. There is not too much insight that astrology can offer about this particular meteor. As meteors go, it was quite small, about the size of bus. It broke apart over the city of Chelyabinsk on Friday 15 February at 9.20 a.m. travelling at 44 times the speed of sound. It weighed about 9000 tonnes with an energy release that was over 20 times greater than the combined force of the Hiroshima-Nagasaki atomic bombs. Fortunately, no one was killed.
I am generally not one for omens, as I prefer to examine the correlations of previous planetary patterns that have already established a track record of empirical observation. Single impact meteors such as this are basically one-offs that do not easily fit into a ready–made array of meaning and signification. This meteor has been frequently compared with the Tunguska meteor impact in 1908 which was actually much larger and caused more destruction in nearby Siberia. We may well ask: was that 1908 meteor explosion an omen for some other human event? Impossible to say for sure, but I suspect it wasn’t. Meteors and comets are occur frequently enough, but I am not aware of any cogent astrological analysis of their significance for human affairs. They are not like planets which have predictable motions (Velikovsky notwithstanding!) which can be compared to a longer record of possible correlation in a more systematic way.
Out of curiosity, we can still take a look at the planetary patterns that framed this meteor event. Were the planets doing something unusual on Friday that might have reflected and hence predicted such an awe-inspiring event to take place? One thing that stands out is that the planet Uranus was rising in Chelyabinsk at the time of the meteor. Uranus is a planet that is associated with sudden and uncontrollable events, and features unusual applications of energy. For this reason, Uranus is said to symbolize electricity and indirectly with atomic power. Given the objective huge energy release of the meteor and the subjective shocking impact it had on the residents of Chelyabinsk, it is highly appropriate that Uranus should be so prominent of the horoscope of the meteor.
The other feature that stands out in this chart is the three-planet alignment of malefics Mars, Saturn and Pluto. All three of these planets stood at 16-17 degrees of their respective signs at the time of the meteor. Interestingly, the symbolism of these planets has a fairly direct correlation with the nature of the event. Mars symbolizes energy and violence, Saturn represents destruction and loss while Pluto is associated with destruction, explosions, and atomic energy. All three are classified as malefic planets that are more likely to be correlated with negative or unwelcome events. In particular, we can note that Saturn was casting its full strength, 3rd house/60 degree aspect upon Pluto. Given Saturn‘s slow velocity ahead of its retrograde station on the 18th, this was a powerful aspect indeed that likely increased the potential for Pluto to cause harm.
While this alignment definitely offers some intriguing correlations with the meteor event, the alignment was not prominent in Chelyabinsk at the time of the meteor. All the planets are tucked away back in their respective houses, well away from the key angles of the Ascendant and Midheaven. This makes this astro-signature somewhat less impressive that it could be. It also makes this meteor event far less predictable.
So while the chart is suggestive of something, it does not provide a compelling explanation of the meteor in astrological terms. After all, Uranus was rising in many, many different towns and cities at the time of meteor on 15 February, so why did the meteor come down in Chelyabinsk? There is no easy answer for that. And the Mars-Saturn-Pluto alignment was not connected in any obvious way to Chelyabinsk. This pattern, therefore, also does not explain why the meteor appeared in Chelyabinsk or why it appeared on the 15th. Sometimes, we should accept the fact that our current knowledge of astrology is only partial and cannot explain everything. It only makes matter worse when astrologers become over-confident and claim omniscience on flimsy evidence. They often only end up further damaging their already-fragile credibilty when they insist on tilting at windmills. Astrology is very much a work in progress that has yet to claim the mantle of a proper science. Given its unique human perspective and evidentiary limitations, it will likely never achieve scientific status in the conventional sense. As such, it is perhaps better thought of as in a permanent state of being a proto-science. That’s more that a little ironic since astrology is usually recognized as the oldest science.
