May 1: Tariffs: Donald Trump in his trade-war (Mars-Jupiter) increases tariffs (Jupiter-house 8) on automobiles from the European Union to 25 per cent. Mars was square Jupiter in the sky; and progressed Mars was square Jupiter in the Mars cycle.
Protest: In America hundreds of labor groups (Saturn-Puto) protest (Uranus) against government policies that prioritize the ultra-wealthy (Jupiter-Neptune) over working-class people (Saturn) calling for ‘no school, no work, no shopping’ on International Workers’ Day (Saturn). Progressed Saturn was parallel Sun in the Saturn cycle; and progressed Uranus was square Neptune in the Uranus cycle.
May 2: Shut-down: In America budget (Saturn) carrier Spirit Airlines (Neptune) shuts down due to a doubling in jet fuel prices (Jupiter-Neptune). Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky.
May 4-5: Donald Trump launches ‘Project Freedom’ with the US military (Mars) guiding stranded cargo ships (Jupiter) out of the Strait of Hormuz. Around 2,000 ships (Jupiter) are estimated to be stuck (square aspect) in the Strait. Iran launches attacks (Mars) and warns the US against being ‘dragged back into a quagmire’. Iran insists it controls the Strait. The UAE accuses Iran of attacking (Mars) the eastern emirate of Fujairah with a barrage of missiles (Mars) and drones, setting an oil refinery ablaze (Mars-Neptune) and wounding three Indian nationals. Mars was square Jupiter and Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky.
Explosion: In China a blast (Mars) at a fireworks factory in Hunan province kills 26 people and injures 61. Mars was conjunction Saturn and square Jupiter in the sky.
Conflict: In Ukraine at least 22 people are killed after Russian missile and drone attacks (Mars) hours before Kyiv was due to enact a ceasefire (Jupiter). Russia also targeted Ukraine’s power grid. Mars was conjunction Saturn and square Jupiter in the sky.
May 7: Conflict: The Iranian military (Mars) retaliates against United States Navy ships (Jupiter) after US forces targeted an oil tanker in Iran’s territorial waters. Iran says the US violated the ceasefire by carrying out air strikes on civilian areas, including Qeshm Island. Donald Trump says the ceasefire is still in effect. Mars was square Jupiter and Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky; and progressed Jupiter was parallel Sun in the Jupiter cycle and progressed Neptune was sextile Sun in the Neptune cycle.
Trade: In America the US Court of International Trade (Jupiter) in a 2-1 ruling rules against Donald Trump’s latest 10 percent global tariffs that took effect on February 24, finding that across-the-board tariffs (Jupiter-house 8) were not justified under a 1970s trade law. Mars was square Jupiter in the sky; and progressed Jupiter was parallel Sun in the Jupiter cycle.
Conflict: In Mali at least 80 people have been killed in two days of attacks (Mars) reportedly carried out by al-Qaeda-affiliated fighters (Mars). Mars was square Jupiter and conjunction Saturn in the sky.
Disease alert: The World Health Organization (WHO) confirms five cases of hantavirus (Mars) linked to deaths aboard a cruise ship (Jupiter) in the Atlantic Ocean but the risk to public health (house 1-Saturn) remains low. Jupiter was square Mars and Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky.
Unrest: In Bolivia protests (Uranus) calling for reforms (Uranus) to agricultural (Saturn), educational (Mercury) and labor (Saturn-house 6) policies enter their third day. The nation is facing a currency (house 2) shortage (Saturn), causing its largest economic crisis in 40 years. Mars was square Jupiter in the sky; and progressed Uranus was square Neptune in the Uranus cycle.
May 9: In northwestern Pakistan a car bombing (Mars) at a police post (Mars), followed by an intense firefight (Mars), kills at least 12 officers (Mars). Progressed Mars was conjunction Sun in the Mars cycle.
May 14-15: Presidents Xi and Trump (Sun) hold a summit in Beijing with Iran, Taiwan, trade and rare earth minerals on the agenda. Progressed Mars was parallel Sun and semisextile Mercury in the Mars cycle.
May 17: Emergency: The World Health Organization declares an Ebola outbreak (Saturn) in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a ‘public health emergency (Mars-house 1) of international concern’, posing risks to neighboring countries. Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky; and progressed Saturn was parallel Sun in the Saturn cycle.
May 18: Conflict: In Oakland, California Elon Musk loses (Saturn) his lawsuit (Jupiter) against Open AI and Sam Altman. The jury (house 9) found he missed the statute of limitations for filing suit. See why he lost here > Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky; and progressed Saturn was parallel Sun in the Saturn cycle.
May 20: Emergency: The outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola (Saturn) in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo alarms experts because of how long it went undetected while spreading across a densely populated area. This makes it difficult to trace and isolate the contacts of infected individuals and there’s no vaccine. It’s likely to have started two months ago in March 2026 and is now linked to 130 deaths. Fear (Saturn) grips the people. Saturn was conjunction Neptune in the sky; and progressed Saturn was parallel Sun in the Saturn cycle.
May 22: Explosion: In China’s Qinyuan county, Shanxi province a gas explosion (Mars-Neptune) at a coal mine (Saturn) kills 82 people, in the country’s deadliest mining accident (Mars) since at least 2009. Progressed Mars was semisextile Neptune in the Mars cycle activating their birth chart conjunction; progressed Sun was parallel Saturn in the Saturn cycle; and Mars was square Pluto in the sky.
May 23: Disease: In Bangladesh a measles outbreak (Mars) has killed more than 500 children in the deadliest surge there in decades.
May 24: Conflict: In Ukraine Russia pounds Kyiv and surrounding areas with hundreds of drones and missiles (Mars) firing an Oreshnik hypersonic missile near the capital; and in Pakistan a bomb blast (Mars) hits a shuttle train carrying Pakistani security personnel and their families killing at least 24 people and injuring around 70 others. Mars was square Pluto in the sky.
Shooting: In Washington a gunman (Mars) opens fire (Mars) on Secret Service agents near the White House, forcing the area into lockdown (Pluto). Mars was square Pluto in the sky; and progressed Sun was square birth chart Mars in America’s chart.
May 25: Conflict: The US military (Mars-house 6) carries out strikes (Mars) in southern Iran against targets including boats attempting to lay mines (Mars) and missile launch sites (Mars). The strikes were designed ‘to protect (Saturn) our troops (house 6) from threats (Pluto) posed by Iranian forces’. Mars was square Pluto in the sky; and progressed Mars was square Pluto in the Mars cycle.
Papal encyclical: Pope Leo XIV (Jupiter) in his first encyclical, titled ‘Magnifica Humanitas’ (Magnificent Humanity) calls for the ‘disarming’ of artificial intelligence (Pluto), warning that ‘new forms of slavery’ (Neptune) are tied to its rise. He warned (Pluto) against ‘a race for ever more powerful algorithms (Pluto) and larger datasets (Pluto),’ driven by ‘the desire to secure geopolitical (Sun) or commercial (Jupiter) dominance (Sun)’. He insisted that ownership of AI data must not be left solely in private hands (Uranus), called for policymakers to protect (Saturn) the rights of workers and keep children safe (Saturn) from the technology (Uranus), and urged the cooling of competition (Mars) between AI companies. Progressed Jupiter was conjunction progressed Neptune in the Aquarian Age chart; progressed Sun was opposition Jupiter in the Jupiter cycle; progressed Uranus was semisextile Jupiter in the Uranus cycle; progressed Saturn was parallel Sun in the Saturn cycle; and Mars was square Pluto in the sky.
Politics: In Turkey a court ruling (Jupiter-house 9) to effectively oust opposition leader Ozgur Ozel (Sun) has inflamed (Mars) a political crisis (Sun), rattled financial markets (house 5) and could prolong the 23-year rule of President Tayyip Erdogan (Pluto). The May 21 decision came against the backdrop of an extended crackdown that has seen the detention or jailing of hundreds of members of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and several mayors. Progressed Jupiter was opposition Sun and semisquare Mars in the Jupiter cycle. (Turkey has Mars and Uranus in house 10 of its July 4, 2026 Mars-Uranus conjunction chart.)
May 26: Conflict: Iran says the United States has violated a ceasefire by striking targets (Mars) near the contested Strait of Hormuz; and Israel pounds Lebanon with more than 120 air strikes in one of the heaviest days of bombing (Mars) in weeks. Mars was square Pluto in the sky and the Mars cycle.
Disease emergency: In the Democratic Republic of Congo the current Ebola outbreak has claimed 220 lives and a delay in detecting cases means responders are ‘playing catch-up’. Countries bordering the DRC have been told to take immediate action. Mars was square Pluto in the sky and the Mars cycle.
Heatwave: Heat records tumble across Europe for the second straight day as an unprecedentedly early heatwave (Mars) continues to bake the continent, with some fatalities reported. In London it was the hottest day in May since records began > the temperatures topped 35 degrees Celsius in the mid-afternoon > mind-bogglingly crazy. Hundreds of heat records have been broken across France. Mars was square Pluto in the sky and the Mars cycle.
May 27: Conflict: The US military (Mars) carries out new strikes targeting an Iranian drone operation that posed a threat to US forces (house 6) and commercial shipping (Jupiter) in the Strait of Hormuz. Mars was square Pluto in the sky; and progressed Jupiter was semisquare Mars in the Jupiter cycle.
May 28: Conflict: In Colombia at least 52 guerrilla fighters (Mars) are killed in clashes between two rival armed groups (Mars-Pluto) vying for control of a strategic cocaine production (Neptune) and trafficking (Pluto) region. Mars was square Pluto in the sky.
May 31: Conflict: In Iran, as peace negotiations muddle along, the US strikes (Mars) Iranian military sites and Iran targets a US base in response. Mars was square Pluto in the sky.
Astrology for Aquarius – sharing our knowledge
