I remember well when I relocated permanently to Florida in 1976 the then local ABC Sarasota (south of Tampa) weather girl was Wendy Ross.  She had this comforting, melodious voice.  In the summer months Wendy would say almost daily, High along the beaches 88 degrees. In South Florida, the temperatures will peak at 95.  She explained central and northern Florida were subtropical and the South Florida tropical.  This map shows Florida's tropical and various tropical areas.

Now, forty some years later, Wendy has become the weather woman, with still the same soothing voice, but now she typically says, High along the beaches in the low to mid nineties.  (She likely skips South Florida part because the temperature is the same there.  The tropical weather zone has moved about 80 miles north from the Gulf's Fort Myers toward Tampa.  Since I returned from Arizona to Florida in 2011, I've experienced hotter summers, growing hotter each year.  It isn't unusual in peak summer for my outside thermometer to reach 95.

Still, beyond my long term weather woman relationship with Wendy Ross, there's a dearth of information about temperature changes.  But then I found this, How Much Hotter Is Your Hometown Than When You Were Born? Plug in your hometown or current location and select any year to see how the climate has warmed. Here's Sarasota since 1976,

Gulf water temperature is a similar issue.  There simply isn't much data out there on the web.  But I found this. U.S. Coastal Water Temperature Trends.  Like the historical temperature tool in the above website, you can select you area and see how the ocean waters have warmed.  Here's the Mid Gulf (of Mexico) region.  It appears the Gulf has changed from subtropical to tropical as well.

Higher temperatures accelerate red tide algae blooms, and there's something else that feeds on hotter tropical waters -- hurricanes.

With daytime highs still in the nineties and the Gulf hot, here comes one now, Tropical storm watch issued for parts of the Gulf Coast

As stated in the brief August 29 entry Hurricane Coming?, hurricanes can bring benefits by breaking red tide blooms and raining on drought areas.  But, of course, they can cause horrific destruction.  And, in bringing dust from the Africa, hurricanes fertilize the Gulf waters to stimulate red tide blooms.  A month after last September's Hurricane Irma, a red tide bloom began and continues still.

There's no known technique in Vedic Astrology to map out climate change, but it is true that Rahu Dasa in the U.S. chart brings tremendous turmoil as the destroyer of today and creator of tomorrow.  For those of you planning on living a long time, this planetary cycle in the U.S. chart began in 2015 and ends in 2033.  At this point I'm personally concerned about getting through the red tide, hurricane season and midterm elections!

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2018©
Doug Riemer

The August 27 Mars Has Turned Forward discussed that issue, as well as Saturn getting ready to end its long retrograde,

Yet, not much happened August 27 -- but a bombshell hit two days earlier and reverberated for a week.  John McCain passing August 25 lit a firestorm of ill will as Trump resisted and resented McCain being the center of attention.  Similarly, not much is happening today with Saturn turning forward -- but the past few days saw the Bob Woodward book pre-release and the NY Times OpEd I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration -- another major drama.

Events just before a planet turns forward are commonplace because the process of changing direction is both empowering and wrenching.

Now we have to deal with the more intense and frequent karmic storms, as also stated in the August 27 entry,

Below are an updated summer/fall timeline and a transit chart for today.  You can see the single remaining planetary affliction is Mars crossing Ketu 9/20+.  The accumulating energy will bring all kinds of havoc this month.

We can see this in hurricane development -- with one storm already making landfall and God getting ready to bowl some strikes. In the world of U.S. culture and politics, expect all kinds of turmoils as Mars/Ketu seething energy and Mars/Rahu vengeful rage boil over -- more than once.

Recall that as Jupiter moves toward the sign-edge of the Libra/Scorpio boundary, he slowly loses his power to protect.  Yet at 23 degrees Libra now, he can still mitigate disaster.  That's why Hurricane Norman just brushed Hawaii, and Gordon didn't reach hurricane strength and is only drenching the Gulf Coast.  Yet as Jupiter continues to move toward transiting into Scorpio October 11, he won't be able to blunt increasingly potent hurricanes.

As we move through peak hurricane season, which coincides with Mars approaching Ketu (and exactly aspecting Rahu), devastating hurricanes and other natural and man made calamities are sure to hit.  Let's just hope Jupiter has enough juice left to prevent major catastrophes.  This is not a fixed karma.  It can go either way -- more minor hurricanes or gigantic ones.  Certainly, though, further tropical storms are inevitable.

Remember, Mars/Ketu is the U.S. chart's second house of domestic harmony, and Mars/Rahu is that chart's eighth house of calamity (watery Cancer).  Fortunately the U.S Dasas (planetary cycles), which is the road upon which we travel, are better now -- Jupiter has replaced Mars in the lineup.   We can already see higher mind Jupiter's wisdom coming in with truly progressive Democratic candidates making inroads and independent voters shying away from Trump.   Prospects for the red tide/blue wave election November 6 are improving for the blue side.

For Trump, Mars/Ketu in Capricorn is his sixth house of disputes and open enemies and Mars/Rahu in Cancer is his twelfth house of loss and hidden enemies.  These energies have been pouring in, and they will become truly onerous as this month progresses -- during which time Jupiter will be less able to protect him.

Trump's Dasas confirm the karma.  Trump's fighting Mars subcycle ends in two days, and then comes Rahu with its unexpected and uncontrollable serpent strikes.  Serpent head Rahu, being on his birth chart's egotistical Sun, will make his already weakened mind truly paranoid.  And transit Rahu in his twelfth house of loss, which is also the sleep cycle, will bring setbacks and also middle-of-the-night endless Tweeting.

Remember too, now forward and powerful Saturn harms his fifth house mind and mental Mercury, which blocks him.  Again from August 27,

While today's entry is about the remainder of September, look at Trump's second level Dasa planet starting January 3 -- Saturn.  That's the exact day the new Congress will be seated.  It looks like Congress will be coming down on him.  This is also a continuation of karma frightening and upsetting the economy.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2018©
Doug Riemer

Using Vedic Astrology for world forecasting is certainly effective and can delve deeper to find trends underlying current events. However, it's also necessary to follow the media and query people to learn their views, knowledge, preconceived positions, motivations, hopes, grievances..... This last is fundamental in the age of Trump because he uses grievances to connect with and motivate his base.

But, this is not a static situation -- like trench warfare during World War I, when opposing sides would be dug in for months and months, unable to advance but unwilling to retreat.

To understand a fundamental trend, let's start with April 2010, when I scootered across the country from Sedona, AZ to Henderson, NC. Covering nine states, that trip was a cross section of America.

Page 2 of You're Crossing America On That?

Beyond taking responsibility for his losses and vowing to recover, this fellow echoed a recurrent theme in this eight state trip -- We're all Americans. We're on the same team.  and We hate the press.

Crossing the Mississippi into the state named for the river, the culture changed.

I found another cross section here in Venice Florida that's a lot more accessible than the folks I encountered cross country in 2010 -- the Venice inlet.

Here's what is looked like until 1937,

The Army Corps Of Engineers, which maintains federal waterways, installed jetties in 1937 to stabilize the inlet for shipping.  The Army Corp is dedicated to armoring shorelines with concrete and steel in the belief it can control mother nature.  Then, dredge and fill development made building lots of out of mangrove swamp and salt flats.  Here's what is looks like now.

(Notice seawalls and homes ring the bay waters and the beach erosion to the south - right.  The bays and flats don't have the mollusks that used to filter out some of the red tide algae.  And the coastline is more vulnerable to hurricane damage -- like the Carolinas right now with hurricane Florence.  Engineers believe in control and don't worry about unintended consequences.)

Now folks gather from all over to watch the sunset, fish and see birds and dolphins, sometimes even manatees.

Well, the wildlife is gone now with the red tide.  And both Floridians and far-away visitors notice that.

For the last five years I've scoottered to the jetty late each day to see the marine conditions, watch the boats and listen to folks -- just as I did crossing the country.  But this is a lot easier!  And well, I do have a bigger Italian scooter too, which draws interest -- like the fellow from Arkansas.

The first few years were pretty uneventful.  The economy was gradually recovering, but still, everyone had been hit by the 2008 Millennium Contraction, which brought some humility.  As the years passed, and the economy improved, I noticed people hardening up -- being less tolerant and forgiving as greed returned.  This is the Trump Effect.  Since the big tax cut last December yachts coming in the inlet have becoming huge!  This is a 70'.  Some now are over 100'.

As the Army Corp hardened the shorelines, the growing economy, tax cuts and Trump's politics of fear of foreigners hardened many visitors to the Jetty.  If you weren't rich, it was your fault for being lazy and thereby inferior.  The Second Gilded Age crowd mentality had returned!  But maybe not for long.

I used my now smoothly presented ploy to draw them out, You know we're all Americans.. We're on the same side.  Old union guys and most from the Northeast U.S. agreed.  Others, however, notably from the heartland and the South very often replied, I don't think so.  There are more racist Trump devotees around than anyone would guess.

Most Europeans were similarly copacetic, but there were bunches of Germans who, in response to my saying, I thought Germans didn't like walls, sputtered at first and then demanded all laws must be strictly enforced -- especially immigration!

After a long summer of red tide stretching into the fall, I switched my ploy to talking about this environmental disaster and suggesting it last until November 6.  Some folks got that.  Many others said, why?  Well, I reply, That's when we vote!  Most say, yes, they'll be voting.  A few others say, I never vote. It doesn't do any good.  And here's my clincher, Democracy doesn't work if people don't vote, and that has permitted the rich and selfish to wreck Florida.  Just look at the red/brown water and dead fish.  This could ruin Florida's economy, and like the last housing bust, spread throughout the country, even the globe

Nobody argues with that.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2018©
Doug Riemer

Although Mars continues in Capricorn until November 6, with this planet of war closing in on Ketu now for its third and final time, it's worthwhile reciting predictive information generated early this summer.   The information is the summer/fall timeline, a current transit chart and predictions for the Globe, U.S. and Trump.

The timeline graphic shows the final major transit event for May through September is Mars cross Ketu 9/20+.  Note again this is the third and final time Mars crosses Ketu.  That results from Mars doing a two month retrograde.  As repetition is integral to Vedic Astrology, this third Mars strike with Ketu peaks the energy.  A date range is given because Mars attacks when he gets close to another planet -- not at the exact conjunction.  The Celestial Wheel has used the term acute to describe this interval.

This transit chart -- where the planets are in today's skies -- shows Mars is now within two degrees of Ketu.  That is why the energy is acute and growing stronger.  They will be conjunct September 25 -- a few more days of building turmoil.  And then Mars has to get at least two degrees beyond Ketu before they stop beating each other up -- month's end.

That being said, hurricane Florence formed August 30 and made landfall September 14.  Mars was seven degrees away from Ketu on the formation date and four degrees away when the storm made landfall.  We can thereby see once again that Mars begins afflicting other planets when it is about five degrees separated from exact conjunction -- bringing in this case a major hurricane.  Also, Typhoon Mangkhut hit the Philippines September 14. (See the below predictions.)

Recall fiery Mars with fiery Ketu tail-of-the-dragon is an explosive combination -- seething anger.  The red arrow shows Mars' aspect (glance) to Rahu, the head-of-the-dragon eclipse point.  That brings vengeful rage.  These descriptors are useful for grasping the nature of the energies in both natural and man made events.

World Transits September 21, 2018

The below predictions for the Globe, United States and Trump were tabulated in the June 8 Predictions Review For Mars In Capricorn.  And as explained in that entry, the predictions were first made in May 28 Mars With Rahu/Ketu 2008 & 2018. These dates are important because the further ahead predictions are made, the less reliable they are -- just like weather forecasting. That the predictions have already been largely born out relates more to the virulence of Mars with Ketu in Capricorn than this astrologer's skill.

There are three salient points to these predictions.  First, the summer of 2008 was the last time Mars conjoined Ketu -- the year the Millennium Contraction began.  Second, the repetition of Mars crossing Ketu 3 times obviously adds to the destructive karma.  (If your car hits an snake in the road, it's badly injured.  If you then back over the animal and then drive forward over it again, it's road kill.)  Third, beyond Mars/Ketu suggesting another calamitous summer/fall, this year's Mars conjoining Ketu lasts over six months due to its retrograde.  That's triple the typical 2 months -- and thereby is more impactive.

Also, previous repostings of these predictions omitted the General Global list, which is included again for clarity.  The bracketed dates in red are links to when these global predictions were first made.  (These links only work if you go to the May 28 entry.)

General Global

The August 21 entry Past The Half Way Mark included three sign charts -- people with known birth dates but unknown birth times -- who have planets in Capricorn -- Elon Musk (Mars/Rahu), Rick Scott (Mars/Rahu) and Jeff Bezos (Mars/Saturn).  The prediction is for all three to suffer from the Mars/Ketu conjunction.  I also included Saudi Arabia, which birth time is known, and has four planets in Capricorn.  Musk and Bezos are major business players with Tesla and Amazon -- plus their own space rocket companies.  Both are taking heat.  Rick Scott is trying to bounce from eight years as Florida's governor to the U.S. Senate but has been nicknamed Red Tide Rick for pulling back environmental funding.  Saudi Arabia is struggling in many ways, and as the world's bedrock oil supplier, we should be worried.

Here's one more chart with planets in Capricorn -- Brett Kavanaugh.  Mars, currently at eight degrees, is moving fast now and will begin afflicting his Venus badly by month's end.  As Venus is the planet of love, romance and females -- well, his problems with the sexual attack accusation have only just begun.  Further, the arrows show aspects to his Jupiter -- the higher mind -- from the two major malefics -- Mars and Saturn.  Saturn's aspect to Aries is to its fallen sign, which is especially bad for this planet of loss and suffering.  It indicates he's immoral -- at least -- and probably worse.  It looks like Kavanaugh is like the snake crossing the highway -- road kill.  And because Republicans can taste the victory in their forty year quest to take over the Supreme Court, they, including Trump, can become road kill in the upcoming election.

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2018©
Doug Riemer

Integral to the Celestial Wheel thesis is that Rahu Dasa (planetary cycle) in the U.S. chart brings a Progressive Age through rebellion.  Actually, America's paranoid and mystical fear of foreigners and authority figures arises during the Dasa of any planet involved with the eighth house of calamity and hidden things.

But it is the 18 year Rahu Dasa that is the breakaway from authority because of its intensity and by virtue of following a Gilded age (10 year Moon Dasa), and then economic contraction (7 year Mars Dasa).  Putting this another way,

an excessive lunar Gilded Age favoring the rich and powerful
is followed by a martian economic contraction causing great suffering
which is then succeeded by a Rahu Dasa stimulating rebellion to restore shared democratic values.

Although this has been covered many times, here's a refresher December 2007 Through the Second Gilded Age.

Below is the U.S. chart.  Three planets are involved with the eighth house (occult), which is the sign of Cancer.  The Moon rules Cancer and thereby the eight house for this chart.  Mercury (authority figures) and Rahu (foreigners) are placed in the eighth. Mercury feels under attack by Rahu and by the eight's hidden depths.  So, mystical paranoia arises during the Dasas of all three. This mental disability flows through the river of America's history, threatening to overflow the banks but not flooding to create a new social/economic landscape until Rahu Dasa.

This, from the August 7, 2008 U.S. Psychology explains America's mystical paranoia (emphasis added),

The bolded items are the paranoid traitsTrump has identified and pushed their buttons.  He got em all!  Bingo.  Well, previous Celestial Wheel entries have noted his intuition.  There are two other Rahu significations to include.  First, Rahu is dark complexioned with pronounced facial features.  Second is Rahu in the eighth house of hidden things delves deep into the lower reaches of society -- notably drug addicts, sexual deviancy and criminals.  Now during Rahu Dasa since December 1, 2015, we have the Opioid crisis, the LGBT movement (along with anti abortion) and drain the swamp -- though it now seems Trump brought in plenty of swamp dwellers himself.  Oh, there are a few more Rahu meanings -- insanity, delusion, illusion and violence.  I'm sure these fit somewhere into Trump world.

Not mentioned is the eighth, being a house of secrets and hidden depths, is that it's great for research and inventions, especially flying machines, for Rahu specifically symbolizes those.  In ancient Iran, the head-of-the dragon eclipse point was known for flying carpets. But Rahu, being the future, is also science.  During its Dasa, scientific advances are made that help lift the country up on a new, higher and dryer highway to prosperity in a progressive age.

The February 8, 2011 Global Transformation Has Begun spoke to Rahu's inventive/scientific signification,

Then last week I found this NY Times September 14 article, The Hacking of America -- Political and technological disruption have fed off each other since the nation’s founding. Now they are dangerously out of whack.  And here's my reader comment,

The Celestial Wheel 2002-2018©
Doug Riemer