The Daily Astronomy Digest for Wednesday, February 21
Time’s Hands
Time’s hands have delicately unlaced the corset
That has been cinching the waist of my existence
They’ve removed the trap my breath was caught in
That kept me from knowing the true essence of life
My lungs are expanding out into the universe
I’m moving beyond a life of barely breathing
Time’s hands have extricated the pain inside my heart
That has kept me loveless under gray mourning skies
They’ve removed the hurt that was a burden in my hands
That tore my intimate relationships into tiny little pieces
I’m not going to live alone in isolation anymore
I’m going to love open and free in the wilds of the woods
With an mellifluous heart that’s not bound by life’s taboos
Time’s hands have pried open my impermeable mind
That has been hibernating inside comfort far too long
They’ve removed phrenic layers of apprehension
That have cursed my restless thoughts with anxiety
I’m not going to live inside procrastination anymore
I’m going to let my mind travel to Seseine’s realms
Let it drink in the gratification of life’s divine temptations
Time’s hands have pierced my visions of tomorrow
That have been locked inside my dreaming eye
They’ve removed the veil of illusions blinding me
That kept me from seeing beyond today’s tears
I’m not going to live inside oblivion anymore
I’m going to move beyond yesterday’s seclusion
With guidance from my inner 3rd eye divination
Time’s hands have freed my imprisoned soul
That has been caged inside a lifeless existence
They’ve removed the chains that bound me to my past
That kept me from seeing the sun rise over the moon
I’m not going to live inside dissolution anymore
I’m going to dance with the muses ’til the end of time
Under endless skies of creativity that I hold in my hand
Time’s hands have woken my hidden dreams
That have been sleeping inside disquieting fear
They’ve knocked down the walls surrounding me
That I built with my own two distrustful hands
I’m not going to live inside apprehension anymore
I’m going to fly on wings of imagination to the ends of the universe
Where I’ll drink in the stars as I soar through the celestial skies
Savannah Skye, Author
Originally published on Pagan Library
Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Wednesday, February 21
The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 134.48° SE
Sun Altitude: 30.15°
Sun Distance: 91.940 million mi
Next Equinox: Mar 20, 2018 11:15 am (Vernal)
Sunrise Today: 6:35 am↑ 103° East
Sunset Today: 5:40 pm↑ 258° West
Length of Daylight: 11 hours, 4 minutes
The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 73.25° ENE
Moon Altitude: -5.82°
Moon Distance: 235645 mi
Next Full Moon: Mar 1, 20186:51 pm
Next New Moon: Mar 17, 20188:11 am
Next Moonrise: Today10:00 am
Current Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 31.9%
Source
Your Astrology for Wednesday, February 21st
The Moon is in Taurus.
The Moon is waxing and in its Waxing Crescent phase.
The New Moon/Solar Eclipse occurred in the sign of Aquarius on the 15th, and the First Quarter Moon will occur on February 23rd.
Moon in Taurus
The Moon is traveling through comfy Taurus today. Eat something you love. Have a second serving.
We are motivated by the desire for serenity, security, peace, and comfort. The Moon is at her most sensual and constant in Taurus. Our basic impulses are to relax, resist change, and “stop to smell the roses”. Life slows down a little, and we get comfortable. We may also be inclined to stubbornness and materialism under this influence.
The Moon in Taurus generally favors the following activities: Substantial and material actions that yield solid results. Financial activities, and those involving personal possessions, applying for a loan, beginning a potentially long-term relationship, music, home decor.
Overview of the Planets and Stars for Wednesday, February 21st
A conjunction of Venus and Neptune happens today in the sign of Pisces, and this is a gentle, subtle, and imaginative influence. We can experience heightened sensitivity to — and awareness of — beauty and spirituality, and we might feel renewed on creative levels. We are easily influenced, seducible and seductive, and given to strong powers of imagination. We are particularly attuned to the world of beauty and romance today. Psychic openness and compassion are themes in our interactions now. This can be a magical time on a romantic and social level, but it could also be a confusing or illusory influence as well.
However, a Mercury-Saturn sextile is also in play today, and it helps ground us, at least on mental levels. This transit promotes a deliberate and efficient approach to the world around us. We see the benefits of getting organized, making lists, attending to details, and making sound judgments and decisions. The Moon spends the day in stable, gentle Taurus.
The sky this week for February 21 to 25
Two stunning star clusters, one of the sky’s largest asterisms, and the majestic Aldebaran all visit the sky this week.
By Richard Talcott
Wednesday, February 21
The dwarf planet Ceres reached opposition and peak visibility in late January, and it remains a fine sight this month. It currently shines at magnitude 7.2 and is an easy object to spot through binoculars. The largest member of the asteroid belt resides in the northern part of the constellation Cancer the Crab, which appears in the east once darkness falls and climbs highest in the south around 11 p.m. local time. This evening, Ceres lies 0.6° due south of the magnitude 5.7 star Sigma1 (σ1) Cancri.
Thursday, February 22
The half-lit Moon rides high in the south just after sunset and then sinks slowly toward the western horizon throughout the rest of the evening. Our satellite officially reaches its First Quarter phase at 3:09 a.m. EST tomorrow morning. The Moon spends the evening hours in western Taurus, not far from the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters.
Friday, February 23
The waxing gibbous Moon lies just east of the 1st-magnitude star Aldebaran this evening. Depending on where in North America you live, the gap appears to be 4° or 5° in early evening and grows about 0.5° every hour thereafter. Aldebaran represents the eye of Taurus the Bull and appears to mark one tip of the V-shaped Hyades star cluster. In reality, Aldebaran lies only about half as far from Earth as the cluster does.
Saturday, February 24
Mars follows about two hours behind Jupiter these winter mornings. The magnitude 0.9 Red Planet rises shortly after 2 a.m. local time and appears 25° high as twilight starts to paint the sky. It lies against the backdrop of southern Ophiuchus, and this morning has a close encounter with the 9th-magnitude globular star cluster NGC 6287. Astroimagers will want to capture the planet as it passes just 15′ north of the cluster. Unfortunately, the view of Mars through a telescope proves disappointing — its disk spans only 6″ and shows no detail.
Sunday, February 25
Although Saturn passed on the opposite side of the Sun from Earth only two months ago, it already appears conspicuous in the southeastern sky before dawn. From mid-northern latitudes, the ringed planet lies 15° above the horizon as twilight begins. Saturn shines at magnitude 0.6 and appears significantly brighter than any of the background stars in its host constellation, Sagittarius the Archer.
Source
In the Sky This Month
Three bright planets congregate in the southeastern quadrant of the sky at dawn this month. Jupiter is the brightest and highest of the three, shining brilliantly from near the center of Libra, high in the south at first light. At the same time, Saturn is low in the southeast, just above the teapot formed by the brightest stars of Sagittarius. Mars slides between them. It begins the month closer to Jupiter (and close to its “rival,” Antares), but ends the month closer to Saturn.
February 21: Wezen
Canis Major, the big dog, is in the southeast as night falls. The constellation’s third-brightest star, Wezen, is one of the biggest, brightest stars in our part of the galaxy. It’s also one of the youngest, at an age of just 10 million years.
February 22: First-Quarter Moon
The Moon will reach its first-quarter phase tonight, as sunlight illuminates half of the lunar hemisphere that faces Earth. The illuminated fraction will grow larger each day until the Moon is full on March 1.
February 23: Moon and Aldebaran
The bright orange star Aldebaran, which marks the eye of Taurus, the bull, stands to the lower right of the Moon as night falls and leads the Moon down the western sky later on. The star is about 65 light-years from Earth.
February 24: Venus Returns
The planet Venus, the brilliant “evening star,” is returning to view. It is quite low in the west at sunset, so any trees or buildings along the horizon will block it from view. If you have a clear horizon, though, you may be able to pick it out.
February 25: Blue Beauty
The constellation Monoceros is well up in the southeast in early evening, between the bright stars Procyon and Betelgeuse. A telescope reveals that the unicorn’s second-brightest star actually consists of three stars, all of which shine blue-white.
February 26: Lynx
An obscure cat known as Lynx pads high across the sky at this time of year. It stands high in the north-northeast in early to mid evening, about half way between the outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper and the bright twins of Gemini.
February 27: Moon at Perigee
The Moon is closest to Earth for its current orbit today, a point known as perigee. The Moon will be full on March 1, so the combination of perigee and an almost-full Moon will produce above-average tides.
Source
The Witches Current Moon Phase for February 21
Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 30%
TODAY – WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018
The Moon today is in a Waxing Crescent Phase. A Waxing Crescent is the first Phase after the New Moon and is a great time to see the features of the moon’s surface. During this phase the Moon can be seen in the wester sky after the sun dips below the horizon at sunset. The moon is close to the sun in the sky and mostly dark except for the right edge of the moon which becomes brighter as the days get closer to the next phase which is a First Quarter with a 50% illumination.
PHASE DETAILS FOR – WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018
Phase: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 30%
Moon Age: 5.47 days
Moon Angle: 0.53
Moon Distance: 373,787.33 km
Sun Angle: 0.54
Sun Distance: 147,974,136.47 km
Source
Witches Of The Craft® 
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