Meteorological Astrology

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Meteorological Astrology (Astrometeorology)

(religion, spiritualism, and occult)

Correlations between celestial events and the weather have been a longstanding concern in astrology. The very name given to weather study—meteorology—harkens back to a time when the appearance of meteors was associated with changes in the weather. Even contemporary scientific meteorology, which does not generally look kindly on astrological methods, has noted a relationship between long-term weather patterns and sunspot activity.

Ptolemy, whose classic work on astrology exercised a powerful influence on astrologers for centuries, discussed the influence of the planets on weather as far back as the second century b.c.e. Even prior to Ptolemy, the ancient Mesopotamians viewed changes in the weather as being linked to the Moon. According to Hungarian Egyptologist Barna Balogh, the Mesopotamian rule of thumb (which Balogh originally came across in Egyptian sources) is that weather pulsates in two-week cycles. The prevailing weather can only change significantly on the fifth day after a new or full moon, and the weather on the fifth day gives an indication of what the weather will be like for the next two weeks. This rule does not predict the nature of the change, only that there will be a change.

Contemporary astrometeorologists pay attention to the daily positions of the planets, their positions at the times of the new and full moons, and planetary patterns at the beginning of each season. In Nancy Soller’s summary of meteorological astrology, Weather Watching with an Ephemeris, she notes, for example, that the prominence of particular planets in a seasonal ingress chart (an astrological chart constructed for the exact moment of the Sun’s entry into one of the cardinal signs) will indicate seasonal patterns:

Mercury prominent on an ingress chart signifies strong winds and atypical cooler or colder weather. Venus prominent on an ingress chart indicates a season with more than the average precipitation. Mars prominent indicates weather that will be hotter and drier than normal. Jupiter brings good weather. Jupiter prominent in a Capricorn ingress chart indicates a mild winter. A prominent Saturn indicates cold, wet weather. A prominent Uranus signifies a dry, windy drought, unless Uranus happens to be in a water sign. Neptune prominent signifies precipitation and mild temperatures, and Pluto operates in much the same way as Mars, bringing higher temperatures and little precipitation.

A good ephemeris (table of planetary positions), such as Neil F. Michelsen’s American Ephemeris for the 20th Century, contains the exact times of ingresses as well as the exact times of the full and new moons.


Brau, Jean-Louis, Helen Weaver, and Allan Edmans. Larousse Encyclopedia of Astrology. New York: New American Library, 1980.
Michelsen, Neil F. The American Ephemeris for the 20th Century. San Diego: ACS Publications, 1980.
Ostrander, Sheila, and Lynn Schroeder. Astrological Birth Control. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1972.
Soller, Nancy. “Weather Watching with an Ephemeris.” In The Astrology of the Macrocosm. Edited by Joan McEvers. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 1990.
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