When: July 26th, 2026 – March 26th, 2028
What: The lunar nodes move through Aquarius and Leo
Takeaway: The nodes of the Moon (aka the points where eclipses happen) are changing signs. The North Node is entering Aquarius and intensifying the desire to innovate our ideas and take actions that serve the greater good. And the South Node is entering Leo, encouraging us to ditch self-centered, attention-seeking habits. Buckle up — over the next year and a half, we’ll also be learning a brand-new set of eclipse lessons.
The lunar nodes are changing signs
On July 26th, the hungry North Node enters visionary Aquarius, and the cathartic South Node enters bold Leo. This shift starts a new 1.5-year cycle that will ask us to deflate our puffed-up egos and challenge the oppressive systems that keep us isolated from one another. Now’s the time to question groupthink, organize our communities, and wholeheartedly commit to the causes we care about.
When the lunar nodes change signs, we also begin a new series of lessons in these areas. Wherever Aquarius and Leo are in your natal chart, these two houses will be sites of learning and growth — and probably some jarring curveballs. The slice of your chart that contains Aquarius will be a hot spot for restlessness and increase, while the part that contains Leo will be a place of shedding and letting go.
On a collective level, the North Node in Aquarius will spur us to flex our people power and strengthen our social support networks, while the South Node in Leo will help us cut ties with overly prideful, arrogant behavior. So if you’ve been treating certain celebrities and political leaders like untouchable royalty, say goodbye to those pedestals.
What are the lunar nodes?
First things first: The lunar nodes aren’t planets. They’re astronomical points in space that are calculated based on the positions of the Sun, the Moon, and the Earth. These points are significant because an eclipse occurs whenever there’s a New or Full Moon near the North or South Node.
Many cultures have described the Moon’s nodes as two halves of a hungry dragon, gobbling up the light of our luminaries. They imagined the North Node as the dragon’s head, triggering feelings of appetite, urgency, and ambition wherever it shows up in either your natal chart or the current sky. The South Node is the dragon’s tail, representing surrender and letting go, and initiating a cathartic release wherever it falls.
The lunar nodes generally move in a retrograde direction, meaning they travel backward through the zodiac. Because this is the default motion of the lunar nodes, their backtracking doesn’t have the same disorienting effect as a planet in retrograde. The lunar nodes are wobbly by nature; they appear to move steadily in reverse through the zodiac, but they actually tend to quiver back and forth like celestial Jell-O. And on July 26th, they wiggle from Pisces and Virgo into Aquarius and Leo, where they’ll stay for a year and a half. Eclipses bring sudden endings and beginnings, so however this period plays out for you, your life may be unrecognizably different by 2028.
A shift from mutable signs to fixed signs
This change of signs, from Pisces and Virgo to Aquarius and Leo, is also a change of modalities. There are three sign modalities: cardinal, fixed, and mutable. Pisces and Virgo are both mutable signs, which are flexible and adaptable, preparing us to transition from one season to the next. On the other hand, Aquarius and Leo are both fixed signs, which land in the middle of the seasons — in this case, either the darkest, coldest days of winter or the hottest, brightest stretch of summer, depending on your hemisphere.
When the nodes enter fixed signs, they emphasize the need to clarify what we really want and persist in striving toward our goals. That means we’ll have to be willing to admit when we’re on the wrong track, without letting pride or stubbornness get the best of us.
The lunar nodes occupy opposite ends of the zodiac, meaning there’s an essential tension crackling between these two signs. Seeking balance between coolheaded reasoning and heartfelt action, between collective growth and personal ambition, is key for successfully working with the nodes in Aquarius and Leo.
Incoming: a new series of eclipses
Because the lunar nodes are where eclipses happen, many of the eclipses over the next year and a half will take place in Aquarius and Leo. At these times, the lights of the Sun and Moon appear to be temporarily snuffed out. Eclipses spark plot twists, energy surges, and instability. It can be hard to stay grounded and centered during the intensity of eclipse seasons, but bringing extra thoughtfulness to our decision-making can help us navigate these turbulent moments more smoothly.
The Sun and the Moon don’t need to be at the exact locations of the lunar nodes to jumpstart a lunar or solar eclipse — just near enough for their light to get at least partially obscured. That’s why we already had a solar eclipse in Aquarius on February 17th, 2026, when the North Node was still in Pisces but relatively close to the Full Moon in Aquarius. Think back to the revelations or notable events that came up on this date, particularly any related to your intellect or your social ties. The issues that were activated for you then hint at what this new eclipse period will teach you.
These are all the dates of this series of Aquarius and Leo eclipses:
- February 17th, 2026, at 4:11 am PT: Solar eclipse near the North Node in Aquarius
- August 12th, 2026, at 10:45 am PT: Solar eclipse near the South Node in Leo
- February 6th, 2027, at 7:56 am PT: Solar eclipse near the North Node in Aquarius
- August 2nd, 2027, at 3:05 am PT: Solar eclipse near the South Node in Leo
- August 17th, 2027, at 12:28 am PT: Lunar eclipse near the North Node in Aquarius
- January 26th, 2028, at 7:07 am PT: Solar eclipse near the North Node in Aquarius
Is this your nodal return?
Is the North Node in Aquarius and the South Node in Leo in your birth chart? Are you around 18, 36, 54, or 72 years old? If so, welcome to your nodal return.
This is a pivotal moment for your growth, when the lunar nodes complete their 18-year cycle through the zodiac and return to their sign placements in your chart. If you’re now entering your nodal return, you’re on a path to finding more equilibrium between your fact-driven, analytical mind and your brave, creative self-expression.
To find out where the lunar nodes are in your birth chart, check the Me tab of the CHANI app, or pull up your chart with our birth chart calculator. For more intel on your nodal return, along with other astrological milestones, you can also read our post about the astrological timeline of your life.
6 ways to work with the North Node in Aquarius and the South Node in Leo
- Discover what your cravings have to teach you. Treat your desires as data and investigate where they come from, in true Aquarius fashion. Ask yourself what triggers your urges and why. When you’re feeling level-headed, zoom out and observe the big-picture patterns of your behaviors, and you’ll deepen the self-awareness this period is offering you.
- Laugh off the moments when your ego flares up. You can take pride in your accomplishments without taking yourself too seriously all the time. So remember that you’re not the main character in everyone else’s life. There’s more than enough room for all of you to share the spotlight.
- Pay attention to what’s not working in both your personal goals and your community projects over the next year and a half. What has to be released, reimagined, or redefined so that you’re not overextending yourself for others or holding yourself back?
- Pace yourself as you fill your calendar. The lunar nodes will be in Aquarius and Leo until March 2028, so you have plenty of time to reassess your relationship to courage, your approach to collective problem-solving, and the difference between self-confidence and self-absorption. Eclipse seasons may feel like pressure cookers, but you can manage this intensity by focusing on what’s right in front of you here and now. So question the impulse to rush. More often than not, that sense of urgency is avoidable or unrealistic.
- Listen to the Astrology of the Week Ahead podcast for the week of July 20th, as well as Your Reading in the “This Week” section of the CHANI app. You can also listen to your personalized monthly reading for July in the “This Year” section to learn more about what the lunar nodes are shifting in your life. All of these resources will help you work with the lessons that the North Node in Aquarius and South Node in Leo are bringing you.
- Learn how the lunar nodes are impacting your natal placements by checking the Transits tab in the CHANI app. You can also read your free planetary horoscope for the North Node in Aquarius and South Node in Leo to find out how your rising sign will be affected during this time.
