Not all transits were born equal - some shake the foundations of our lives, others iron out the details.

On August 1 of this year we are going to have Uranus conjunct Mars and the North Node at 18 degrees of Taurus. What does that mean?

Uranus is associated with astronomy, space exploration, electricity, technology, science, innovation, rebellion, protests, grass-roots action, informal leaders, street leaders, protest leaders, "ordinary people" coming on to the stage. It has been transiting the sign of Taurus since March 2019 (it briefly entered Taurus in the summer of 2018) and just a few weeks ago crossed that mid-point of 15 degrees.

Taurus is associated with food, money, love, values and valuables. Has there been any technology-based innovation (Uranus) in any of these (Taurean) areas?

The easiest one to spot is crypto. Digital money, whether bitcoin or CBDCs, have been a prominent feature of the news agenda in the past few years. The rise (and rise) of fintech has made it easy for previously unbanked populations to access financial services like never before. Just a few years ago you had to be Warren Buffet to make money on the stock market. Now, even bike mechanics have investment portfolios. And that "democratization" has been made possible due to apps and information on social media (at the core of which is technology). The largest financial management company in the world Blackrock has started an initiative to allow small shareholders to participate in the decision-making process at Board-level. They are doing so by technological means, namely apps. So left and right we see involvement of "small" people in the financial industry. That is one way in which Uranus is mixing with Taurus.

But there is more - Taurus is also associated with art and we saw the birth of the first new form of art since cinema - NFTs. There is a lot of speculation around NFTs and their true value but the most important aspect here is that NFTs are digital art which is said to be made for the metaverse. It has Uranus in Taurus written all over it.

What about food? In that domain, too, Uranian influence is detectible. Lab meat, plant-based "meat", vegan products, worm salad dressings, potatoes fried in cockroach oil and the list goes on.

Now that we reviewed how Uranus in Taurus has played out in the world at large, let's turn to the North Node. The North Node is not a planetary body, it is a mathematically calculated point in the sky of where the Moon, Sun and the Earth cross paths. In astrology, this point is a point of destiny and increase. Wherever the North Node goes, it causes increase of some sort. Together with this concept we need to look also at the concept of the South Node - a point in the sky opposite the North Node which is associated with decrease and decline.

Between May 2020 and January 2022 the north node was in Gemini, a sign associated with the media, communication, local travel, local community. The South Node of decrease was in Sagittarius, a sign associated with long-distance travel, philosophy and religion. Did we observe a decrease in long-distance travel and increase in media consumption between May 2020 and January 2022? Most certainly we did.

But now the Nodes of the Moon are in Taurus and Scorpio (the nodes always move backwards, or in retrograde). The North Node of increase is in Taurus while the South Node of decrease is in Scorpio. Taurus is associated with the land, nutrition, food, the environment (World Environment Day is on April 22, just at the start of Taurus Season). Is there an increase in the prominence of these themes in our lives, perhaps one that started shortly after January 18, 2022 (the day the nodes shifted to the Taurus-Scorpio axis)? Yes, we are witnessing an increase in concerns about food availability and security.

Taurus is also associated with the financial system. Is there an increase in that domain? Yes, inflation caused by the money that was printed during the pandemic is beginning to kick in.

Is there an increase in concerns related to the environment? Yes, due to the insecurity of gas supplies, many countries have decided to restart coal plants or increase support for renewable energy.

What about Mars? The God of War has now also entered the sign of Taurus, what is he going to do there? In most general terms, he is going to bring volatility to what is already a very volatile situation. Mars is about war, initiative, aggression, decisive action. The week that Mars entered Taurus, we saw Sri Lanka people storm the presidential palace and burn down the residence of the president, signaling to their ruling elite that their situation has become unbearable. Tensions in Sri Lanka reached that critical level because the country ran out of gas and foreign exchange to buy food (again those Taurean themes).

As Mars continues its journey through Taurus, it begins to tighten the conjunction with the North Node and Uranus which will become exact on August 1st. What will this conjunction be about? Some decisive, aggressive action (Mars) will be taken in response to the challenges posed by Uranus and the North Node.

On the other hand, Mars is a pioneer, Uranus rules over space, the North Node is increase - will we see some increase in space first-man-ship? NASA just revealed the first photos of its newest James Webb Space Telescope, giving us a glimpse of the universe like we have never seen it before. Astronomers said that with this new telescope we will be able to make more new discoveries and at a much faster rate than before. Has a new era of space discoveries just been opened? Uranus conjunct the North Node.

Historically, the last Uranus transit through Taurus with the Nodes there happened on January 4th 1939 (9 months before the start of World War 2!). Uranus and the South Node met at 15 degrees. At the time, Mars was also in the mix but at 15 of Scorpio, exactly opposing this conjunction and conjuncting the South Node.

In that same month, an earthquake in Chile killed 30,000 people (Uranus-Mars contacts are often associated with earthquakes of various magnitudes). Also, German chemist Otto Hahn, referred to as the father of nuclear chemistry, published his discoveries (made 10 days earlier) about the nuclear fission of uranium, marking the beginning of the Atomic Age.

A year earlier, in March of 1938, Uranus, Mars and the South Node were all in Taurus. Mars hit two consecutive conjunctions, first with Uranus (at 11 of Taurus in the end of March), then with the South Node (at 28 of Taurus in the end of April). In March 1938, oil was discovered in Saudi Arabia, electronic giant Samsung is founded and Germany annexed Austria. The end of April saw the first appearance of Superman in Action Comics.