Thank you for joining me on the next installment of my planetary blog series. This week I will explore the planet, Venus. This one is a personal one for me as Venus rules my chart.
Everyone has a planet that rules their chart and the planetary ruler is determined by the sign that is sitting on the easternmost part of your birth chart, called the ascendant. Whatever sign rules your ascendant, the planet that rules that sign rules your chart.
I have a Taurus ascendent, that is ruled by Venus. With my Libra Sun and a whole shemozzle of planets in Libra all too well so I am very Venusian! However, I can’t help when composing this blog series on the planets to go to my scientific roots and consult the NASA pages about the planets. Here are some fun scientific facts about Venus (with thanks to #NASA):
Is the second planet from the Sun
One Venus year equals 225 Earth Days
One Venus day equals 243 Earth days (so its day is longer than its year!)
Distance from the Sun 0.7 AU, ~ 66 million kilometres
One way light time to the Sun ~6 min
Rusty in colour with possible active volcanoes
Air pressure equal to that found 1 mile below the Earth's ocean (~90 times more than our earthly atmospheric pressure)
Is similar in size and identity to the Earth except has:
thick toxic carbon dioxide atmosphere (runaway greenhouse effect)
has clouds of sulphuric acid that make Venus the hottest planet and hot enough to melt lead
Phosphine detected in the Venusian clouds = possible microbial life.
Fascinating!
I think it is amazing a planet so similar to our home world could be so inhospitable yet show potential signs of life from its atmospheric chemistry. It is such a unique planet that it spins in the opposite direction from most planets. Therefore the Sun on Venus rises in the West and sets in the East.
Venus is known as the morning and evening star that shines brightly and is visible to the naked eye. It was named after the Ancient Roman goddess Venus as it is the only planet to have an association with the feminine in astrological symbolism. It is known across several ancient cultures as follows:
Greek: Aphrodite
Babylonian: Ishtar
Egyptian: Isis
Phoenician: Astarte
This ancient goddess (from whatever culture you may know her) represents beauty, love, and womanhood. She also emulates the feminine in all of us (no matter how we identify) and relationships.
Venus rules the signs of Taurus, Libra, and traditionally the 2nd and 7th house of the astrological chart. Her placement in your chart shows what you potentially look for in a partner. It also shows what you want from a partner as well. I liken her to be the vixen of the heavens so there is something there about the vixen in all of us.
She is also about balance and security. Your Venus placement can show you how you maintain balance in a relationship, as well as how you appreciate creativity and beauty. Venus also emulates how you value yourself and what you consider your material worth.
Venus is a lovely planet that is seen in a positive light across the eons of astrological interpretation. So the next time you watch a sunset or sunrise, have a look for Venus in the skies. She’s the beautiful vixen sending you a bright hello from 60 million kilometres away.