Mars will reach its station and then turn Retrograde in Leo just before 2009 Winter Solstice, on December 20, 2009. Mars stations Retrograde in Leo on December 20, 2009 @ 19 Leo 42 and stations Direct on March 10, 2010 @ 00 Leo 19. Mars enters the "Retrograde shadow", or 00 Leo 19, on October 17, 2009 and leaves the "Retrogade shadow", or 19 Leo 42, on May 17, 2009. For those that know and ponder such things, that literally means Mars will be in the dramatic sign of Leo from October 30th, 2009 to June 7th, 2010. That's 7 months of dramatic action--for good or ill depends on your chart of course, but dramatic it will be. For those that have a house cusp or a planet [or heaven forbid actually have Mars at 19 degrees Leo, like me!] at 19 degrees, the process will be more dramatic for the next 7 months of your life. Mars will station at the 19th degree of Leo [an exceptional degree anyway] and make that degree the emphasis of the process. [read more]