Mars retrograde 2022: What to Expect

Mars retrograde is undoubtedly one of our major and most transits of the end of 2022.

Mars moved into the versatile air sign Gemini on August 20, 2022, and it will remain in this sign until March 26, 2023. At that point, Mars will have spent more than seven months there. This unusually long stay is, of course, due to the retrograde period of this transit. Mars will station retrograde at 25° Gemini on October 30, and this retrograde will end at 8°08′ Gemini on January 12.

Mars retrograde occurs roughly every two years, so unlike the planets orbiting further from the Sun — which spend several months every year retrograde — Mars retrogrades are always pretty memorable.

The last time Mars retrograde occurred in Gemini was around 15 years ago. It wasn’t all the way in Gemini, it started in Cancer, and then Mars moved into Gemini, so part of that was in Gemini. That was from late 2007 until early 2008. As an interesting fact, the Messenger spacecraft made its very first flyby of the planet Mercury on January 14 at 2:04 EST.

When planets retrograde, they are also closer to the earth, so their symbolism and what they represent and stand for is felt more strongly at these times.

With Mars retrograde in Gemini, projects will take longer to take off. This is because Mars rules our drive and high energy, and with Mars retrograde, this will be a time to make minor adjustments to projects and to aim to get the details right. If you find you have to redo something because things aren’t working out, remember that you are not the only one going through this retrograde. It will affect all of us. Everyone will be in the same boat.

If you have any natal placements around 25 and around 8 degrees of Gemini, you can expect to see developments of a Mars-like nature at these crucial moments. If you have yet to plan carefully, you may realise that you have set yourself up for frustration by overloading your schedule.

Being pulled in too many directions may also be a common theme with this transit.

Since Mercury rules Gemini during Mars retrograde period, many mercurial incidents might occur. Some of them may include significant traffic accidents, problems with roadway projects, and plane crashes.

Mars retrograde would not be the best time to start a business or a new love relationship. Mars rules the army, military and athletic competitions. These types of competitive situations also would produce better results after January 12, when Mars is moving direct.

Since Mars also rules passion, affection and chemistry, the chemistry might be off temporarily. It would be an excellent time to reassess strategy in both career (or business) and love. Aries and Scorpio are both ruled by Mars. These signs will especially feel delays.

Even though Mars will be retrograde over 2,5 months, it will still form prosperous aspects with other planets (Mars trine Saturn on November 28), so it won’t be just doom and gloom. The only thing to watch out for is to be more cautious before entering into final agreements. Life goes on, and we can’t stop leaving because a planet is retrograde; however, we can be more cautious knowing what’s going on in the sky.

Justyna Rossy

Justyna Rossy D.M. Astrol, STA Diph, based in the UK is an astrological consultant and a writer specializing in natal, vocational and predictive astrology. Justyna was certified with merit from the Mayo School of Astrology in London, and has high knowledge of both modern and classical implications of a chart interpretation. Justyna’s passion is exploring the mysteries of life using the ancient symbolic wisdom behind the time, date and place of birth in order to help others achieve their most magnificent and greatest potential.