Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2016 March 20

A Picturesque Equinox Sunset
Image Credit & Copyright: Roland Christen

 

Explanation: What’s that at the end of the road? The Sun. Many towns have roads that run east – west, and on two days each year, the Sun rises and sets right down the middle. Today is one of those days: an equinox. Not only is today a day of equal night ((“aequus”-“nox”) and day time, but also a day when the sun rises precisely to the east and sets due west. Featured here is a picturesque road in northwest Illinois, USA that runs approximately east -west. The image was taken one year ago today, during the March Equinox of 2015, and shows the Sun down the road at sunset. In many cultures, this March equinox is taken to be the first day of a season, typically spring in Earth’s northern hemisphere, and autumn in thesouth. Does your favorite street run east – west? Tonight at sunset, with a quick glance, you can actually find out.

 

 

 

 

 

PLANET TRACKER

Sun in Aries

Mar 19, 2016 to Apr 19, 2016

 

Signs are Seasons

Aries begins the astrological year on the first day of spring, the Vernal Equinox. It arrives at the moment of perfect balance between the forces of day and night. The long Northern Hemisphere winter is finally over and new life begins poking its way through the softening earth. It is the sign of beginnings; it’s the first, number one, the sign that starts the story of self-discovery. There is an appropriate focus on the self with Aries that is not necessarily about selfishness. It’s about the discovery of oneself as an independent entity.

Aries is the warrior who is more concerned with challenging him/herself than with defeating others. In fact, Aries’ reality is about focusing on one issue at a time. It is a sign of action, rather than one of strategy. It belongs to the group of fire signs that also includes Leo and Sagittarius. But, as the initiating, cardinal fire sign, Aries is the most spontaneous of the group.

Be Here Now

Patience is not the primary virtue of Aries. However, any individual born with the Sun in Aries will be a combination of astrological (and other) factors, so patience is a possibility. Yet, the point of Aries is not to wait, but to be. In fact, Aries psychologist-psychedelic explorer-guru Baba Ram Dass wrote Be Here Now, a book that reminds us that the only reality is in the present.

Of course Aries, like everyone else, remembers yesterday and has to deal with tomorrow. But, the great gift of this month is to remind all of us to be in the moment. This is truly where we live, even if wounds from the past or fears about the future may blur our vision. Take a moment to just be. Stop, breathe and remember that everything is here now. There’s nowhere else you need to be.

Ramifications

Fiery Aries is not here to make us comfortable. It is here to spark the imagination, put a burr in the saddle and help us start anew. It’s Aries that propels us forward, breaking old connections to discover new worlds.

If you need courage to make changes in your life, this is a good time to start. You don’t have to know where you’ll wind up nor have all your strategies in place. Aries is about putting things in motion and improvising from there. Try something new this month and trust in your ability to learn what you don’t already know.

Celebrity Aries include tough old actresses like Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, hot younger ones Ellen Barkin, Sarah Jessica Parker and even younger Sarah Michelle Gellar, Reese Witherspoon, Claire Danes, Keri Russell, Melissa Joan Hart and Julia Stiles. Aries actors include action jocks Jackie Chan and Steven Seagal, along with Eddie Murphy, Alec Baldwin, Marlon Brando, Robert Downey Jr., Russell Crowe, Warren Beatty, Quentin Tarantino, Haley Joel Osment and Alec Guinness.

Aries women who sing include Celine Dion, Aretha Franklin, Diana Ross, Billie Holiday, Mariah Carey, Emmylou Harris, Mandy Moore and Reba McIntire. Thomas Jefferson, Colin Powell and Al Gore are political Aries. Rams Rosie O’Donnell, Conan O’Brien and David Letterman love to chat, while Pete Rose, Jennifer Capriati and Garry Kasparov reflect the competitive side of this sign.

 

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The Words of Confucius

Heaven means to be one with God.

Your Daily Influences
March 20, 2016 

 

Justice Reversed
The upsidedown Justice represents injustice, inequality and a lack of mercy or understanding.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingwaz
Ingwaz signifies completion, success and fertility. Your present ambitions are about to be met. You are fecund in both mind and body.

 

 

 

Leo the Lion
This aspect of your life will be strongly influenced by a person who is pompous, patronizing, bossy, interfering, dogmatic and intolerant. This person is most likely a relative–the one you invite to family functions but only because you have too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Daily Influences represent events and challenges the current day will present for you. They may represent opportunities you should be ready to seize. Or they may forewarn you of problems you may be able to avoid or lessen. Generally it is best to use them as tips to help you manage your day and nothing more.

Prepare for the New Week Ahead

Your Ancient Symbol Card Reading for the Week of March 21

 
Past Influence that will impact your life is waning.

The Medicine Bowl

The Medicine Bowl is an essential shaman’s vessel for preparing and dispensing sacred blends of herbs and other items used to keep both clan and individuals physically and spiritually healthy. Often The Medicine Bowl and the hallowed potions made with it are cornerstones to tribal ceremonies and member’s rites of passage. The Medicine Bowl represents both the practical and spiritual aspects of healing the body and cleansing the soul through the use of natural remedies and the affirmation of your spiritual self. In a broader sense, The Medicine Bowl symbolizes the health of a clan and strengthening of ties within the clan.

 

 

Present Influence that will impact your life is very strong.

The Journey

While physical travel may be involved, The Journey represents an individual’s spiritual trek from one point to another. The Journey is represented by a sailboat gliding across an open sea. Like those traversing the ocean The Journey requires that we move off the firm ground of our present state and strike out for a new destination. The trip itself may well be full of adventure and challenges. There may be times when we lose sight of where we came from and possibly not even know where we’re going. Storms may crop up without warning. Diversions may slow our progress to our destination down. While it’s good to have an idea of where you want to go, it’s equally important to remember that often it’s the getting there and not the destination that is the most rewarding. To take such a spiritual voyage takes courage and conviction that direction in which your are moving is right for you.

 

 

Future influence that will impact your life is growing and will be very strong in this week.

Mars

Mars represents those qualities we commonly associate with the male/yang persona. Mars traits include raw energy, ambition, aggression, confidence, passion, and a sense of adventure. The occurrence of Mars denotes the dominating presence or need of the qualities listed above. Martian influence may have a negative impact unless it is balanced with an influence that can blunt the brashness and impulsiveness of Mars.

Your Witches Runes for the Week of March 21

 

 

The Star

In many cultures, the Star is a symbol of hope, dreams and destiny, and in the Witches Runes this symbol has a similar connotation. When the Star rune appears, it’s green light for you to go after what you want.

Note that the Star does not say you’ll get everything you want without any work. No. This symbol is a not about easy success, but about having faith in what you are doing – and doing it. In fact, the goals suggested by the Star are usually the highest and most significant ones – the ones that are hardest to get. It does not matter what the dream is, but its significance in your life. This symbol also represents ideals, and they can be both individual and collective ones.

In a more down-to-earth way, the Star is related to revolutions, changes, risks, speculation and all things motivated by faith and ideals. It can represent a sudden spark on inspiration, a windfall, a sudden rise to fame or a promotion. Though the sudden changes brought by the Star are usually positive, they are also fast: you can get back to point zero as quickly as you rose. So don’t be afraid to jump forward when the opportunity arises.

The Star urges you to take the risk, to have hope and to trust. After the staleness of Crossroads, the Universe finally begins to move again. If you believe in Higher Powers, this symbol shows that They are guiding you in this moment. The Star is a very positive rune, but in a more negative context it can represent revolution for revolution’s sake and the constant idealization of people and situations. It can also stand for excessive individualism when going after a dream.

In relationship readings, this rune represents hope and an idealistic kind of love. Usually the people involved in the relationship have high expectations about the other. They easily put their partner on a pedestal, only to feel frustrated when reality strikes. The Star can also represent unrequited love, or the love for someone who is unattainable. On the other hand, this rune tells you to not give up love entirely – keep looking, because someone is coming.

 

 

Man

The Man rune demands action. It’s not longer time to quietly sit and think, or to hide yourself and heal. No, it’s time to get up and fight for what you want. If things are slow or stagnated, change them. Begin something new. It’s not a moment to let things flow as they will, but to grab the reigns and gain control over the situation. Be the leader and defend your stand.

While the Woman rune is about healing, this one can be about defending yourself, and, sometimes, hurting or getting hurt in the process. You may have to defend your opinions, your actions or choices against some aggressive people. This rune offers you a challenge, but is also shows that you have the resources needed to face it. Naturally, this rune has very aggressive potentials in it, and they need a good deal of discipline in order to not become sorely destructive.

The Man rune also accelerates everything… nothing stays still when its around. The outcome of your question may happen sooner than you expected, but the result will probably be unexpected. It does not mean that all will go wrong, no – things will simply develop in unseen ways.

In relationship readings, the Man rune promises a period of instability, so it’s important to not have high expectations. Under the influence of this rune, the relationship can be a stairway to Heaven or a ticket to Hell… and sometimes both, in a short period of time. It promises a bumpy journey for the heart, but with a great level of intensity. The Man rune can stand for love/hate relationship, cat and rat games and obsessions… the kind of things that turns one nuts (for good and for bad). This rune is good in questions concerning sexuality.

 

 

The Scythe

This symbol is very familiar to most of people, often associated with harvest and death. In the runes, it is no different. The Scythe is related to endings, sudden separations, final decisions, important changes and danger.

The appearance of this symbol show that there’s something in you life you need to bring to end now, before it snowballs into something worse. Usually, the decision that the Scythe forces you to make is one you’d rather escape from… it’s a painful and difficult choice. Even though you know (or feel) it’s for the best, you’ll mourn the fact that it has to happen.

Also, the Scythe is connected to sudden, swift changes that force you to alter completely your plans, strategies and sometimes the very way you see the world. The situation is no longer what it was, your modus operandi no longer works here. Your ideas no longer correspond to the reality. The information you have is no longer accurate, or useful. You need to strain those adaptation muscles and find a way to keep standing while the rug is pulled from under your feet.

Although this rune can represent physical danger, such as accidents or surgeries, many time it refers to sense of foreboding. Something just isn’t right… the fear of loss looms large. Trust these feeling and proceed with caution. This rune can also relate to actual death and all related to it: burials, graveyards, inheritances, heirlooms, legacies and things connected to your ancestry.

In relationship readings, the Scythe suggest caution too. It can represent sudden and irresistible attractions, the kind that inspire people to do crazy things. . Obviously, this rune also represent separations, divorce and conflicts, always leaving a sour aftertaste. The strong passion can quickly transform into strong resentment. In its most positive note, this rune can symbolize relationship that completely transform the people involved.