Astrology CalendarMercury Retrograde 2027: The Exact Dates
Three windows in 2027, with stations to the minute and the degrees each one covers. Computed from an ephemeris, not copied, and dated so you can tell.
Retrogrades
Pluto Retrograde: Real Dates and the Evidence
Pluto goes retrograde once a year, for about five and a half months, read as a review of power, control and what is being rebuilt from underneath. The computed dates, what retrograde motion physically is, and an honest account of the evidence.
The short answerPluto goes retrograde once a year, for about five and a half months, and the period is read as a review of power, control and what is being rebuilt from underneath. The next one runs May 8, 2027 to October 17, 2027. Pluto is retrograde about 44 per cent of the time, which is close to half of every year.
Pluto retrograde dates
Computed from the ephemeris: these are the moments Pluto's apparent motion changes direction, which is the actual definition of a station rather than an approximation of one.
| Retrograde from | Direct on | Length | Degrees covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 2027 | October 17, 2027 | 163 days | 7°11' Aquarius back to 4°45' Aquarius |
| May 9, 2028 | October 19, 2028 | 163 days | 8°49' Aquarius back to 6°24' Aquarius |
| May 11, 2029 | October 20, 2029 | 163 days | 10°27' Aquarius back to 8°03' Aquarius |
| May 12, 2030 | October 22, 2030 | 163 days | 12°04' Aquarius back to 9°40' Aquarius |
| May 14, 2031 | October 24, 2031 | 163 days | 13°39' Aquarius back to 11°16' Aquarius |
| May 15, 2032 | October 25, 2032 | 163 days | 15°13' Aquarius back to 12°51' Aquarius |
| May 17, 2033 | October 27, 2033 | 163 days | 16°46' Aquarius back to 14°24' Aquarius |
| May 19, 2034 | October 29, 2034 | 163 days | 18°18' Aquarius back to 15°57' Aquarius |
| May 20, 2035 | October 31, 2035 | 164 days | 19°49' Aquarius back to 17°28' Aquarius |
| May 21, 2036 | November 1, 2036 | 164 days | 21°19' Aquarius back to 18°59' Aquarius |
To the hour: Pluto turns retrograde May 8, 2027, 8:14 AM ET and turns direct October 17, 2027, 11:50 PM ET.
What retrograde motion actually is
No planet goes backwards. Retrograde is an appearance, and it is the appearance that gave astronomy one of its hardest problems for two thousand years. A planet looks like it reverses because we are watching it from another moving planet: when the Earth overtakes an outer planet on the inside of its orbit, or an inner planet overtakes us, the line of sight swings the other way for a while.
The same thing happens on a motorway. Overtake a slower car and, against the distant hills, it appears to slide backwards for a few seconds. Nothing about the other car changed. Your position did.
Explaining those loops is what Ptolemy's epicycles were for, and getting rid of them is a large part of why heliocentric astronomy won. So retrograde motion is completely real, completely understood, and entirely a matter of where you are standing.
What Pluto retrograde is read as
Pluto retrograde is traditionally read as a review of power, control and what is being rebuilt from underneath. The reasoning is straightforward once you know what the motion is: the planet covers the same stretch of zodiac three times, forward, back, and forward again, so anything it touches gets touched three times. Revisiting is a description of the geometry before it is an interpretation.
Pluto is retrograde about 44 per cent of the time, which is close to half of every year. That figure is worth knowing, because the amount of attention a retrograde gets is almost exactly inverse to how rare it is. Mercury retrograde is famous and common. Venus retrograde is uncommon and barely discussed.
| Planet | Retrograde | How often |
|---|---|---|
| Mercury | about 19% | 3 or 4 times a year, 3 weeks each |
| Venus | about 7% | every 18 months, about 6 weeks |
| Mars | about 9% | every 2 years, 2 to 3 months |
| Jupiter | about 30% | yearly, about 4 months |
| Saturn | about 36% | yearly, about 4 and a half months |
| Uranus | about 41% | yearly, about 5 months |
| Neptune | about 43% | yearly, about 5 months |
| Pluto | about 44% | yearly, about 5 and a half months |
The outer planets are retrograde for so much of the year that treating one as an event makes little sense. What astrologers watch there is the station: the few days the planet appears to stand still before turning, which is when it is moving slowest against the sky and sitting longest on one degree.
What the evidence saysThere is no measured effect of Mercury's apparent motion on electronics, travel, contracts or anything else, and the studies that have looked have found nothing. What is well documented is confirmation bias: once you are told to expect things to go wrong, you notice and remember the ones that do. That does not make the practice worthless, and plenty of people find a scheduled three weeks of reviewing and double-checking genuinely useful. It does mean the honest claim is smaller than the popular one, and anybody telling you not to sign a contract is overstating what this is.
What to actually do with it
- Use it as a prompt, not a prohibition. Pluto retrograde is a good three weeks to re-read, revisit and finish things, which is useful advice whether or not the astrology holds.
- Do not postpone something important on account of it. People have lost jobs and houses waiting for a planet, and no reputable astrologer would advise that.
- Back things up and read the email before you send it. That is good practice in any three weeks.
- If you want to test it, write down what happens. Most people who are certain about retrogrades have never kept a record, which is exactly the condition under which bias thrives.
Being born with it retrograde
Pluto is retrograde about 44 per cent of the time, which is close to half of every year, so a meaningful share of people have Pluto retrograde in their birth chart. The usual reading is that the planet's job gets done inwardly or on a second pass rather than straightforwardly, which is a description rather than a problem. It is not a flaw, it is not rare enough to be special, and a chart with it is not worse than one without.
Whether yours is retrograde needs the chart calculated, although for this one a birth time is less critical than usual: retrograde status does not change through a day.
Questions people ask
When is Pluto retrograde?
May 8, 2027 to October 17, 2027. The table on this page lists the next ten periods.
How often does Pluto go retrograde?
Once a year, for about five and a half months.
What does Pluto retrograde affect?
It is read as a review of power, control and what is being rebuilt from underneath.
Does Pluto actually move backwards?
No. It is an optical effect of watching one moving planet from another moving planet. The same thing makes a slower car appear to slide backwards as you overtake it.
RubyAstro writes about astrology for reflection and self-understanding. Nothing here is medical, legal or financial advice, and none of it is a prediction of events. Read our full disclaimer.
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