Many years ago as I wrote my Janet’s Plan-its calendars, I noticed that from the fall of one year to the spring of the next, the degrees where the New and Full Moons occurred would repeat across consecutive signs. Then for the next six months or so, the degree of each New and Full Moon decreases by an average of 1-1/2 degrees per month until the next round of repetition ensues. The repeating degrees shift from one groove to the next, dropping down about 11 degrees lower in the zodiac than where they were a year before. I hadn’t heard other astrologers mention this phenomenon. There certainly wasn’t a name for it, so I coined the term “moon groove.” It might not be have been that easy to spot with a superficial glance since the groove pattern spans over two calendar years.
Such an emphasis extends the usual time frame for the influence of a New or Full Moon. A plain vanilla New Moon impacts the following four-week lunar cycle. We feel the effects of an ordinary Full Moon for about a week centered on the date of the Full Moon. The groove degrees receive attention for six months. And somewhere in those six months, there is at least one New Moon Eclipse and at least one Full Moon Eclipse. Eclipses are more powerful and long-lasting versions of New or Full Moons. These are the peaks of the groove’s power.
From October 2019 through March 2020, all the New Moons are at 4-5 degrees of whatever the current Sun-sign is, while the Full Moons are all at 19-20 degrees of whatever sign is opposite the current Sun-sign. Check your natal chart for anything affected by these grooves. You can use an orb of plus/minus 2 degrees and consider aspects beyond conjunctions.
The influence will express in a manner associated with your natal planet’s sign, house location and any house(s) ruled by the planet. (And you might have multiple planets in your chart affecting you at once, which would mean the natal aspects between them are being triggered.) The repeating New Moon degrees signal a six-month period to expect or initiate something new in the area of your life related to the affected planet(s). The Full Moon groove gives you six months for a blossoming or culmination in the areas of your life related to your affected natal planet(s). Sometimes, Full Moons also mean something comes to an end; you’ve had enough, you’re done with it.
Within the six-month period, some of the New or Full Moons will be more significant or have a stronger effect, usually when they make a “hard aspect” (conjunction, opposition, square) to your affected natal planet(s). Mark those on your calendar and see what use you can make of “the power of the groove.”
As an example, let’s look at football great Tom Brady, who is still playing at 42 years of age. Will this season be his last? From his chart, I think so. He’s climbed to the top of his field, has broken records and received every award and honor, etc. What more could he want? He loves to play. No one wants to quit what they love. Brady has Saturn, the planet of ambition and achievement, elevated and in a place of honor near the top of his chart in the Tenth House, where it is said to be “dignified.” This points to his great success, not only due to talent but also to (Saturn’s favorite) hard work. His Saturn is at 19 degrees of Leo, receiving the Full Moon groove, a sign for finishing something. The groove hits his Saturn exactly at the February 9, 2020 Full Moon, less than week after the Super Bowl. That’s close enough to signal the end. And he’ll probably go off on a high note.
There is a chance that injury or illness will take Brady off the field first. I say this because he has other chart factors in the neighborhood of 19 degrees receiving the Full Moon groove. His Ascendant, which begins the First House of health and bodily matters, is almost 18 degrees of Libra and his Vertex (associated with accidents and run-ins) is at 18 degrees of Taurus in his Eighth House, representing transformation and possibly destruction. The current/upcoming position of the ruling planet of his other health house, the Sixth, is Neptune, moving through 16 – 17 degrees of Pisces. This planet and sign together rule feet and the immune system, either of which could be problematic. Neptune is forming two Finger of God triangles with his Ascendant, one with Saturn, the other with the Vertex. This type of configuration indicates something strange leading to something else weird and finally turning out okay. The November 12 Full Moon hits Brady’s Vertex, making it a vulnerable time for him around then.
He also has his North Node at his Ascendant. This means a life lesson is to focus on himself, his body and his health. The Lunar Eclipse Full Moon on January 10 is square to his Ascendant and North Node, at the same time as it hits the exact top of his chart, his Midheaven. A Full Moon, especially an Eclipse, at one’s Midheaven is a sure indicator of a major blossoming in one’s career and potentially a change. It’s even possible his team will be knocked out of the play-offs close to that Eclipse and then he could announce his retirement after the Super Bowl.
Is something new brewing for him? Brady has no planets at 4 or 5 degrees receiving the New Moon groove. The closest is his Moon at 6 degrees of Aries in his Sixth House, a position related to employment and service. The Moon rules his Tenth House of career. Aries is the main sign for athletics and competition, so he’s likely to remain in the sports world. The dispositor (ruler of the sign placement) for his Moon is his Mars in Gemini, a sign of communications. My best guess is he goes into sports broadcasting and possibly as soon as next spring. The last New Moon in this groove is March 24 at 4 degrees of Aries, conjunct Brady’s Moon. Time for new work.
Now see what you can do with the Moon Grooves if they hit your chart.