A drifting cloud of ash from the eruption of the Icelandic Volcano Eyjafjallajoekull has led to the cancellation of most flights in northern Europe since yesterday.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8623364.stm

The domestic impact for Iceland has already been discussed by Andrew Bevan on the National Chart of Iceland thread. However, I thought it would be interesting to open another thread here to discuss the wider implications of the event across Europe.

The chart for the event is below:
I am grateful to Andrew Bevan for providing us with data for the first eruption of Eyjafjallajoekull on March 20th 2010 at approximately 11.30pm. 63N35 19W23

This was the first eruption from the Volcano Eyjafjallajoekull after almost 200 years of silence. A second eruption occured on the evening of April 14th and this is the cause of the current cloud of ash which has grounded flights across Europe.

Thanks for the reference, Mark.

I would like to point out that the Moon is on Pleiades in the eruption chart and direct the readers attention to a thread I started in the 'Tradition (& techniques) Section' at Skyscript in October 2008 called Pleiades - Aladdin's Lamp. The volcano has, if not exactly been lit up like a lamp, still been growling away and letting off its smoke and fumes for the last few days. The concept of a Genie trapped in a Lamp and the Weeping Sisters both stem from the idea of bottled-up emotions, a situation of frustration, the venting of feelings and potential or wealth under pressure. Pleiades is on the MC of the Chart of Norway. Norway is a Scorpio nation and there is an interesting similarity and relevant relationship to the lower worlds with the Norwegians pumping up sub-terrestial treasures and wealth through oil resources in the North Sea.

The idea of volcanic pressure being on the build in the above chart comes from the Sun opposing Saturn and being directed to Pluto. The aspects are applying. I would generally give a degree for a day, a week or a month - however, my reasons for pin-pointing 13. April are given in a separate thread and relate to the Haiti and Chile earthquakes.

It is rather interesting to see how Neptune is on the cusp of the IC in the chart initial eruption. The 4th house represents 'Products of the Earth' and with Neptune in the Air signs Aquarius, the 'fog' or rather smoke and volcanic ashes of the volcano has been spread through the air and paralyzed air traffic in Europe. The fact that ice from the glacier (Neptune) has been melting and running down into the volcano in this weeks eruption has been adding to the creation of volcanic ashes. Saturn, Lord of the 4th, in the air-brigde Libra, and who is in a state of destruction due to the opposition to the Sun, is also relevant.

It seems to be too early to say anything for certain about how this story will develop. The first important cross-roads is to get past the 5 week barrier from 20 March and that leads to 24 April. Monitoring how the main Volcano performs at this point of time might give a better indication of the long term picture.

I would like to point out that the Moon is on Pleiades in the eruption chart

Hello Andrew,

Yes I was about to point out the Pleaides connection too. Traditionally this star cluster is of the nature of the Moon and Mars. The 'something to weep about' association of the star cluster is linked in Greek myth to the upset of the 'Seven Sisters' or Pleaids following separation from one of their number. This may have been a later incorporation of older associations of the star cluster with rainfall and sailing times.

Looking at Mesopotamian mythology these stars have a connection to both Mars and the underworld:

?The regents of the star cluster (Pleiades) are a group of battle-inciting deities called the Seven Gods, in Akkadian the Sebetti. They are found in the entourage of Erra the god of war, plague and death?.the star cluster is one of the most frequently used names for the violent and malevolent planet Mars. The attribution is primarily derived from the Sebetti being attendant upon the god Erra-Nergal, who is closely associated with Mars in astrology? (Babylonian Star-Lore-Gavin White)

In ancient India the star cluster called the Pleiades was associated with six goddesses. They come under the the Vedic god of fire Agni.

?they acted as nurses to an infant God called Skanda or Karttikeya who was born in the Pleiades and grew up to become the leader of the armies of the gods. In Hindu astrology , this god is associated with the planet Mars the archetype of the warrior.

As might be expected , given the Martian symbolism associated with this ?Star of Fire? , Pleidian people are fiery characters with intense, powerful emotions. This mansion is said to be governed or ?ruled? by the ancient Vedic god Agni, who is the symbol of fire itself. The name Krittka, however, is related to the name Karttikeya, the God Skanda but also signifies a razor.. and indeed the razor is the principal symbol of mansion 3. These natives are sharp and cutting? ( Mansions of the Moon-Kenneth Johnson)

The Pleiades was on the ascendant for the take off time of the Polish Presidential Plane that crashed last Saturday.

http://skyscript.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5275

In terms of other fixed stars I see Regulus was on the MC of the chart. This event is certainly commanding everyones attention.

In ancient times it was custom to toss someone off a mountain to settle the displeasure of the Gods. In this case, maybe somebody should just simply give Iceland a loan...

Looking at Ingress charts this seems to be reflected in the Moon in the 9th house (All house systems) in several countries. For example Ireland, Britain, Denmark, Norway, Sweden etc. Its noteable the Moon's dispositor is that detrimented Venus In Aries in the 8th house.

Here is the UK Ingress chart again:
I had initially interpreted the Moon in the 9th zodiacally conjunct Algol to be indicating problems with long term travel in the United Kingdom. However, I had been putting this down more to the ongoing threat of strike action at British Airways and a proposed national rail strike. These issues have also got caught up in court action by the employers fitting the 9th house association. I had anticipated the applying Moon-Neptune square contributing to travel chaos.

However I admit the headline 'Icelandic Volcano grounds European Air flights' was totally off my radar.

A perfect fit for the astrological symbolism but a difficult one to predict.

MarkC wrote:However I admit the headline 'Icelandic Volcano grounds European Air flights' was totally off my radar. A perfect fit for the astrological symbolism but a difficult one to predict.

The editor of a reputed newspaper in Norway questioned me regarding the high number of unusual events occurring at the moment. Not only earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. What was the explanation? My answer was that several of these events are probably lay latent at different times, but at the moment more stuff seems to be breaking the surface. I believe it is in the Saturn/Pluto-package and overall picture valid for 2010.

at the moment more stuff seems to be breaking the surface.

Yes, quite literally in the case of Eyjafjallajoekull!

The 24. April could be the monster volcano Katla. Experts will be keeping an eye on that one! The Sun was involved in a T-square upon entering Aries. The drama started shortly after the Sun entered Aries, but the direction through Aries gives it two heads - first Saturn, then Pluto.

Background material: Dagbladet

Great name: Eyjafjallajoekull, sounds wonderful; I love to hear the word spoken in the news (and think to myself: nothing bad can go out from this... )

Eyjafjallajoekull, sounds wonderful; I love to hear the word spoken in the news (and think to myself: nothing bad can go out from this...

Its certainly a tongue twister I believe it means 'island-mountains glacier'

Beyond the amusing title though this is quite a grim story that could get a lot worse.

This incident brings up some sobre reflection on previous eruptions which had an impact well beyond the country of origin. Here are a few:

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0197833.html

In 1783, a poison cloud from the eruption of Iceland's Laki volcano killed thousands of people across Europe and undermined farm output by spewing an estimated 120 million tons of sulfur dioxide into the air. That amount of sulfur dioxide was three times European industrial output in 2006. Source: Colin Macpherson, a geologist at the University of Durham in England.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laki#1783_eruption

In 1815, the Tambora volcano eruption in Indonesia killed an estimated 92,000 people, and its ashes swept all the way to Europe, blanketing the continent and turning 1816 into a "year without summer."

In 1883, Krakatoa erupted in Indonesia killing 36,000 and created vivid red twilights in Europe from November 1883 through February 1884 ? a fact reflected by painters of the period.

The 1980 Mount St. Helens volcano eruption in Washington state, in which 57 people died, created a cloud of ash 2,500 miles long and 1,000 miles wide.

The real worry as Andrew mentioned above is another Volcano near to Eyjafjallajoekull called Katla. Apparently the name Katla means 'dragon'. This is located on the M?rdalsj?kull glacier which is the southernmost glacier in Iceland and is almost 600 km2. It is much larger than Eyjafjallajoekull at about 30 km in diameter and the highest parts reach almost 1500 metres. Katia has a reputation as one of the most dangerous volcanoes of Iceland.

Katla has been showing signs of unrest since 1999 and geologists have concerns that it might erupt in the near future. Particularly, monitoring has been intensified following the March 2010 eruption of the volcano beneath the Eyjafjallaj?kull glacier. The eruption of this nearby long-dormant volcano in March and April 2010 has prompted fears among some geophysicists that it might trigger an eruption at Katla. Historically, the three recorded eruptions of Eyjafjallajoekull coincided with an eruption of Katla. Katla has tended to erupt roughly every 40 - 80 years. The last major eruption was 1918. Lets hope it continues to keep quiet.....

In that initial chart, Mark, notice that the Moon is on the antiscia of Mars and the Part of Spirit is conjunct Pluto. Pluto was stationary last week on the 7th on the same day as Saturn was retrograde and on the cusp of slipping back to earth sign Virgo. All this stuff is in the works - but the over-all picture and pattern is best related to our accumulated obervations of similar phenomena that has been going on over the recent months.

Andrew wrote:

In ancient times it was custom to toss someone off a mountain to settle the displeasure of the Gods.

I have a couple of American politicians in mind that are perfect for the sacrifice.

Mark wrote:

However I admit the headline 'Icelandic Volcano grounds European Air flights' was totally off my radar.

And this is a perfect example of the difficulty of prediction. You were right for the wrong reasons, but in all fairness, who, drunk or sober, would have even guessed air travel was going to be stymied by a volcano? I cannot imagine this was on anyone's radar.

Tom