Mars Retrograde 2027: January 10 to April 1, Virgo Back Into Leo — Every Mars Retrograde 1980–2029
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Mercury's retrograde gets the headlines, but the next Mars retrograde is already on the calendar: January 10 to April 1, 2027. Mars stations in Virgo, backs into Leo, and turns direct there.
Mars retrograde 2027 at a glance
| Date (UTC) | Sign | |
|---|---|---|
| Mars turns retrograde | January 10, 2027 | Virgo |
| Mars turns direct | April 1, 2027 | Leo |
| Length | about 81 days |
Mars goes retrograde about once every 26 months, for 60 to 81 days. Over 1980–2009 our engine finds Mars retrograde 9.5% of the time, so roughly one person in ten born in those years has Mars retrograde in their chart. For Mercury it is about one in five.
Every Mars retrograde, 1980–2029
| Turns retrograde (UTC) | Turns direct (UTC) | Sign at start → end | Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 16, 1980 | Apr 6, 1980 | Virgo → Leo | 81 |
| Feb 20, 1982 | May 11, 1982 | Libra → Libra | 80 |
| Apr 5, 1984 | Jun 19, 1984 | Scorpio → Scorpio | 75 |
| Jun 9, 1986 | Aug 12, 1986 | Capricorn → Capricorn | 64 |
| Aug 26, 1988 | Oct 28, 1988 | Aries → Aries | 63 |
| Oct 20, 1990 | Jan 1, 1991 | Gemini → Taurus | 73 |
| Nov 28, 1992 | Feb 15, 1993 | Cancer → Cancer | 78 |
| Jan 2, 1995 | Mar 24, 1995 | Virgo → Leo | 81 |
| Feb 6, 1997 | Apr 27, 1997 | Libra → Virgo | 81 |
| Mar 18, 1999 | Jun 4, 1999 | Scorpio → Libra | 78 |
| May 11, 2001 | Jul 19, 2001 | Sagittarius → Sagittarius | 69 |
| Jul 29, 2003 | Sep 27, 2003 | Pisces → Pisces | 60 |
| Oct 1, 2005 | Dec 10, 2005 | Taurus → Taurus | 69 |
| Nov 15, 2007 | Jan 30, 2008 | Cancer → Gemini | 77 |
| Dec 20, 2009 | Mar 10, 2010 | Leo → Leo | 80 |
| Jan 24, 2012 | Apr 14, 2012 | Virgo → Virgo | 81 |
| Mar 1, 2014 | May 20, 2014 | Libra → Libra | 79 |
| Apr 17, 2016 | Jun 29, 2016 | Sagittarius → Scorpio | 73 |
| Jun 26, 2018 | Aug 27, 2018 | Aquarius → Capricorn | 62 |
| Sep 9, 2020 | Nov 13, 2020 | Aries → Aries | 65 |
| Oct 30, 2022 | Jan 12, 2023 | Gemini → Gemini | 74 |
| Dec 7, 2024 | Feb 24, 2025 | Leo → Cancer | 79 |
| Jan 10, 2027 | Apr 1, 2027 | Virgo → Leo | 81 |
| Feb 14, 2029 | May 5, 2029 | Libra → Virgo | 80 |
Mars retrogrades come back to nearly the same part of the zodiac after 15, 32 or 47 years: the 2027 retrograde (Virgo → Leo, 81 days) closely matches 1995 (32 years earlier) and 1980 (47 years earlier), and 2012, 15 years earlier, also fell in Virgo.
What the numbers do and don't tell you
Mars looks retrograde when Earth, on its faster inner orbit, overtakes it, which is also when Mars is closest and brightest. Astrology reads Mars retrograde as a time when drive and anger turn inward. That is an interpretation, and this table cannot prove or disprove it. It can tell you, to within about a day, when Mars appears to move backward.
How we calculated: planetary positions from the public-domain formulas in our chart engine (Meeus, Astronomical Algorithms, and NASA/JPL low-precision orbital elements). A planet is counted as retrograde when its apparent longitude, seen from Earth, decreases over a day; stations were searched hour by hour. Dates are UTC and can differ by a day in your time zone. Our planetary positions are accurate to a few hundredths of a degree for Mars; stations are the slowest moments of the motion, so treat each date as accurate to within about a day.
- Your full birth chart, free — see whether Mars was retrograde when you were born
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