Retrograde planets in 2026

A planet is retrograde when, seen from Earth, it appears to move backwards for a while. It never really reverses; the effect comes from Earth's own position on its orbit.

Astrologically, a retrograde turns the planet's themes inward and asks for review. The fast planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars) are felt clearly in daily life; the outer planets spend almost half of every year retrograde.

In the table, the shadow begins when the planet first reaches the degree where it will later turn direct, and ends when it returns to the degree where it turned retrograde.