August 12, 2026 | 10:36 AM | 20°01′ Leo
On August 12, 2026, we will experience a powerful Total Solar Eclipse New Moon in Leo.
The New Moon occurs at approximately 10:36 AM, with the Total Solar Eclipse beginning around 10:47 AM and lasting approximately two minutes and 18 seconds.
The New Moon will occur at 20°01′ Leo, with the eclipse reaching approximately 20°06′ Leo.
This is not an ordinary New Moon.
New Moons are traditionally associated with new beginnings, intention-setting, and planting seeds for what we want to cultivate. But when a New Moon coincides with a Solar Eclipse, the energy can feel much more consequential.
Eclipses tend to accelerate change, bringing developments, endings, beginnings, and realizations that can alter the trajectory of our lives.
Think of an eclipse as a cosmic plot twist. Sometimes the plot twist is something we consciously chose. Other times, life moves us in a direction we weren’t expecting because something has outgrown its place in our lives.
The deeper invitation is surrender.
When something falls away, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve been abandoned. Sometimes an ending is simply creating room for something that could not have existed otherwise.
Who Feels This Eclipse Most?
This eclipse may be especially noticeable for those with planets or chart angles between 15°–25° of Taurus, Scorpio, Leo, or Aquarius.
Those with placements between 15°–25° of Aries, Gemini, Libra, or Sagittarius may experience the energy more harmoniously.
Those with placements between 15°–25° of Cancer, Capricorn, Pisces, or Virgo may experience the energy more subtly.
The Energy of Leo
The Spark of the Zodiac
Leo is the heartbeat of the zodiac.
Ruled by the Sun and symbolized by the lion, Leo energy is warm, bold, creative, passionate, playful, and unapologetically alive.
Leo governs self-expression, creativity, romance, joy, children, and play, and is the natural ruler of the Fifth House.
This is the part of us that wants to create for creation’s sake, love loudly, experience joy, and take pride in our existence.
Yes, Leo has an ego.
Sometimes that ego is exactly what gives us the courage to go after what we want. Other times, it can become the very thing that blocks intimacy, growth, or collaboration.
The medicine isn’t ego death.
It’s ego integration.
Leo teaches leadership through self-trust.
Think about the moments when you didn’t know how to fix the thing, build the thing, or navigate the challenge, yet somehow you did.
That quiet inner confidence is Leo wisdom.
Leadership doesn’t always roar.
Sometimes it simply knows.
Leo’s opposite sign, Aquarius, reminds us that our individual brilliance is meant to serve something larger than ourselves.
We don’t shine so we can dominate.
We shine so we can inspire.
Leo also rules the heart.
This New Moon invites us to open our hearts—to believe in ourselves, to reconnect with joy, and to allow ourselves to be seen.
Breathe into your chest.
Practice heart-centered breathwork.
Speak to yourself with love.
Affirmation: I am. I exist. I allow my light to shine.
What Does This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon in Leo Have in Store for Us as a Collective?
The Cancer Super New Moon in July brought our attention inward.
It asked us to look beneath the surface of our lives and notice the cracks in our emotional foundations.
What actually makes us feel safe?
What have we been carrying simply because we were taught to carry it?
Which beliefs, relationships, routines, ambitions, and definitions of success were genuinely chosen by us—and which ones were handed to us by our parents, teachers, peers, society, culture, or the stories we absorbed from the world around us?
Cancer asked us to remember what we wanted before we were conditioned to want something else.
Now Leo asks:
What are you going to do with what you discovered?
What have you felt deep in your bones but been afraid to express?
What ideas have been living inside of you because you weren’t sure anyone else would understand them?
What kind of world do you actually want to live in?
And perhaps most importantly:
Do you have the courage to let yourself be seen trying to create it?
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon in Leo invites us to move from emotional awareness into courageous self-expression.
Leo isn’t afraid to create something that has never existed before simply because no one has given it permission to exist.
And this is where the energy of this eclipse becomes especially interesting.
Because Leo isn’t asking us to perform for approval.
Leo is asking us to create from the heart.
What Are You Ready to Roar?
Leo is the heartbeat of the zodiac.
It represents creativity, self-expression, joy, romance, play, children, passion, confidence, and the courage to take up space.
Leo teaches us that self-expression isn’t frivolous.
Our creativity matters.
Our joy matters.
Our ability to imagine something different matters.
And sometimes the most radical thing we can do is allow ourselves to believe that another way is possible.
This is especially significant because Leo’s opposite sign is Aquarius, which reminds us that our individual brilliance exists within a larger collective ecosystem.
We aren’t being asked to shine simply so everyone can admire us.
We are being asked to shine brightly enough that our light helps illuminate what is possible for everyone.
There is a version of Leo that says, Look at me.
But there is another version that says:
Look at what we could create.
This eclipse is asking us to move toward the second.
Courageous Ideas Need Somewhere to Go
One of the strongest themes surrounding this eclipse is the relationship between creativity, communication, innovation, and collective transformation.
Mercury in Leo connects with Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto, creating an environment that can support big ideas, inventive thinking, compassionate communication, artistic expression, and transformative conversations.
Our minds may feel bigger.
Our imaginations may feel more expansive.
We may suddenly see possibilities that weren’t visible before.
There can be a desire to learn, question conventional wisdom, explore philosophy or spirituality, communicate complex ideas in accessible ways, and experiment with new ways of thinking.
Uranus adds curiosity and innovation, while Neptune connects our ideas to imagination, compassion, spirituality, and a vision of what could be.
But Mercury’s opposition to Pluto reminds us that telling the truth can be uncomfortable.
When we challenge deeply established beliefs, we may encounter resistance—from other people, institutions, or even ourselves.
Sometimes the hardest part of expressing a new idea isn’t coming up with it.
It’s allowing other people to disagree with you.
We may be tempted to become defensive when our ideas are questioned, or to assume that disagreement means we are wrong.
But this eclipse offers another possibility:
What if feedback isn’t rejection?
What if allowing our ideas to be challenged actually helps us make them stronger?
What if we can be passionate about what we believe without believing we have to control how everyone else responds?
This is where Leo’s confidence becomes emotionally intelligent leadership.
The Courage to Build Something Real
There is also an important grounding influence surrounding this eclipse.
The Sun, Moon, and Jupiter in Leo form harmonious connections with Saturn in Aries, creating a beautiful relationship between inspiration and responsibility.
We may feel inspired to break the mold, but we are not being asked to throw everything away and start blindly.
We are being asked to build.
To experiment.
To take the idea seriously enough to give it structure.
To have the patience to turn a vision into something tangible.
This is the difference between having a dream and becoming responsible for the dream.
You don’t have to know exactly how you’re going to build the future.
But you do have to be willing to take the first step.
When the Dream Is Bigger Than the Plan
Not every aspect surrounding this eclipse feels effortless.
Mars square Neptune can create confusion around direction and motivation.
We may dream bigger than we currently know how to act. We may feel inspired one moment and uncertain the next.
And Venus opposite Neptune can remind us that our ideals—particularly in relationships—can sometimes become projections.
We may see what we desperately hope is there rather than what is actually there.
This doesn’t mean we should stop dreaming.
It means we need to bring our dreams into relationship with reality.
Vision without discernment can become fantasy.
But vision combined with emotional intelligence, creativity, compassion, and grounded action can become something much more powerful.
The invitation isn’t to make our dreams smaller.
It’s to become capable of building them.
From Personal Transformation to Collective Change
The outer-planet connections surrounding this eclipse add another layer to the story.
Uranus in Gemini, Neptune in Aries, and Pluto in Aquarius create a generational backdrop of intellectual innovation, spiritual imagination, and profound social transformation.
Uranus trine Pluto speaks to a deep sense that change isn’t merely necessary—it is possible.
This is where the Leo-Aquarius axis becomes especially important.
We are not simply being asked:
What do I want?
We are being asked:
What do I want to contribute?
What would you love to see change in your community?
What systems, traditions, or cultural expectations have you questioned because something inside you knows there has to be another way?
What would a more compassionate, creative, peaceful world look like to you?
And what part of that vision can you begin creating now?
Maybe it is through your art.
Maybe it is through your business.
Maybe it is through parenting differently.
Maybe it is through building community.
Maybe it is through speaking about something that has historically been difficult to talk about.
Maybe it is simply through refusing to teach the next generation that the limitations we inherited are the only way things can be.
The future doesn’t arrive fully formed. Someone has to imagine it first.
This Eclipse Wants You to Be Seen
There is a tendency to think of confidence as something we acquire after we become successful.
But Leo teaches us that confidence often develops in the opposite direction.
We act before we feel completely ready.
We share the idea before it is perfectly polished.
We create before we know whether people will like it.
We allow ourselves to be visible before we know exactly what will happen next.
And through that process, we discover that we are capable.
That is Leo’s quiet form of leadership.
It isn’t necessarily about being the loudest person in the room.
It is about trusting yourself enough to contribute something meaningful to the room.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon is giving us an opportunity to roar in the area of our lives ruled by Leo.
But our roar doesn’t have to be angry.
It doesn’t have to be performative.
It doesn’t have to prove anything.
It can be creative.
It can be compassionate.
It can be playful.
It can be visionary.
It can be the courageous declaration:
“I believe something different is possible.”
And then the even more courageous question:
“What can I create to help make it possible?”
The Heart of This Eclipse
The Cancer Super New Moon asked us to examine the emotional foundations of the lives we have built.
This Leo Total Solar Eclipse asks us to take what we have learned and give it a voice.
To stop abandoning our deepest desires simply because they don’t fit the expectations we inherited.
To stop assuming that the world has to remain the way it is simply because it has always been that way.
To let ourselves imagine.
To let ourselves create.
To let ourselves be seen.
And perhaps most importantly, to understand that our individual authenticity and the collective good do not have to be opposing forces.
Your joy can matter.
Your creativity can matter.
Your voice can matter.
Your wild idea can matter.
Your vision for a better world can matter.
Leo reminds us that change begins with someone brave enough to believe in what does not yet exist.
So this eclipse, ask yourself:
What have I felt deep in my bones but been afraid to express?
What would I create if I wasn’t afraid of being judged?
What kind of future do I actually want to participate in creating?
And do I have the courage to let my ideas see the light of day?
You don’t need to have the entire plan.
You don’t need everyone’s approval.
You don’t even need to know whether your idea will work.
You simply need enough courage to begin.
The lion doesn’t roar because it knows everyone will listen.
It roars because it knows it has something to say.
Solar Eclipse New Moon in Leo Horoscopes: All Zodiac Rising Signs
Read the horoscope for your Rising Sign first. You can also read for your Sun and Moon signs, but these forecasts are written specifically for your Rising Sign using the Whole Sign house system.
The house activated by this Total Solar Eclipse New Moon in Leo shows where you are being invited to express yourself more authentically, create something new, and have the courage to become more of yourself.
Aries Rising
5th House: Creativity, Romance, Children & Self-Expression
Joy wants to find you again.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 5th house of creativity, romance, children, play, and self-expression, making this a powerful time to reconnect with the parts of yourself that feel most alive.
You may feel pulled toward a creative project, romantic experience, artistic expression, or simply making more room for play in your life.
For some, this eclipse may also bring conversations surrounding pregnancy, fertility, or expanding your family.
But underneath all of this is a deeper question:
What brings you joy when you aren’t trying to make it productive?
You don’t need to justify what makes your heart light up.
Let yourself create simply because you love creating.
Ask yourself: What would I do if I wasn’t worried about being judged?
Taurus Rising
4th House: Home, Family, Roots & Emotional Foundations
The story of home is evolving.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 4th house of home, family, roots, and emotional foundations.
Family conversations, moving plans, renovations, or changes within your home life may become a major focus.
But the deeper transformation may have less to do with the physical structure of your home and more to do with what home means to you.
You may find yourself reflecting on childhood experiences, family dynamics, inherited beliefs, and the emotional patterns you learned early in life.
What once felt familiar may no longer feel like security.
This eclipse invites you to create a foundation that reflects who you are now—not simply who you were taught to be.
Ask yourself: What does home mean to me now?
Gemini Rising
3rd House: Communication, Learning, Mindset & Community
A new idea could change everything.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 3rd house of communication, learning, mindset, and local community.
Important conversations or fresh perspectives may completely change how you see a situation.
You may become more curious, outspoken, or willing to question assumptions that you previously accepted without much thought.
The stories you tell yourself matter.
Not every thought deserves your belief.
This is an excellent time to write, teach, learn, speak, create content, have important conversations, or explore a new way of understanding the world around you.
Your voice is part of your creative power.
Ask yourself: What if there’s another way to look at this?
Cancer Rising
2nd House: Income, Values, Self-Worth & Resources
Your definition of value is changing.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 2nd house of income, values, self-worth, and resources.
A new financial chapter may be beginning, but first you’re being asked to reconsider what truly makes you feel valuable.
It may become increasingly difficult to measure your worth solely through money, productivity, possessions, or external validation.
What do you value now that you didn’t value six months ago?
What are you willing to invest your time and energy in?
And what are you no longer willing to sacrifice simply to maintain a version of security that doesn’t feel authentic?
This eclipse invites you to build a relationship with money and self-worth that reflects the person you’re becoming.
Ask yourself: What do I value now that I didn’t value six months ago?
Leo Rising
1st House: Identity, Confidence & Self-Expression
You are becoming more of yourself.
This is one of the most important New Moons of the year for you.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 1st house of identity, confidence, appearance, and self-expression.
A new version of you is emerging.
Others may begin seeing you differently, but more importantly, you are beginning to see yourself differently.
You may feel ready to change how you present yourself, how you move through the world, or how boldly you express what you want.
You don’t need to become someone new.
You simply need to become more of yourself.
Let yourself take up space.
Let yourself be seen.
Let yourself lead.
Ask yourself: Who am I becoming?
Virgo Rising
12th House: Healing, Closure, Dreams & the Subconscious
Not every transformation requires immediate action.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 12th house of healing, closure, the subconscious, spirituality, and retreat.
Dreams, memories, intuition, and emotions may become especially active.
You may be processing something beneath the surface that isn’t ready to be fully understood yet.
Give yourself permission to rest.
The answers you’re seeking may arrive through stillness rather than action.
This can be a powerful time to release an old belief, pattern, attachment, or identity that has quietly been keeping you from moving forward.
You don’t have to force closure.
Sometimes your nervous system needs to experience safety before your mind can understand what your soul already knows.
Ask yourself: What belief am I finally ready to release?
Libra Rising
11th House: Community, Friendships & Your Vision for the Future
Your future is becoming more intentional.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 11th house of friendships, community, collaboration, long-term goals, and your vision for the future.
Your community may be evolving.
Some relationships may deepen as you discover shared values and dreams, while others may naturally fade as you become more aligned with where you’re going.
You may also feel inspired to contribute to something larger than yourself.
This is an excellent time to ask what kind of people, communities, movements, or collaborations you want to help build.
Your future isn’t only about what you accomplish individually.
It’s also about who you build it alongside.
Ask yourself: Who do I want to build my future alongside?
Scorpio Rising
10th House: Career, Reputation & Purpose
Your definition of success is changing.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 10th house of career, reputation, achievement, and public purpose.
Career developments or shifts in your definition of success may become increasingly clear.
You may find yourself questioning whether the goals you’ve been pursuing still reflect who you are.
Success may no longer look the way it once did—and that’s okay.
You are being invited to think beyond external recognition and ask what kind of contribution actually feels meaningful.
What do you want to be known for?
What do you want your work to contribute?
And what would happen if you allowed yourself to pursue a version of success that actually feels like yours?
Ask yourself: What does success actually mean to me?
Sagittarius Rising
9th House: Beliefs, Spirituality, Higher Learning & Perspective
Growth begins where certainty ends.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 9th house of higher learning, travel, spirituality, philosophy, and belief systems.
Your worldview is expanding.
You may encounter a new teacher, philosophy, spiritual practice, educational path, or experience that challenges the way you previously understood the world.
You don’t have to abandon everything you believe.
But you may be ready to question whether every belief you carry still belongs to you.
Curiosity becomes your greatest teacher.
Allow yourself to explore without needing immediate certainty.
Ask yourself: What belief am I being invited to reconsider?
Capricorn Rising
8th House: Intimacy, Trust, Shared Resources & Transformation
Something is ready to be released.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 8th house of intimacy, trust, shared resources, vulnerability, and transformation.
This can be a deeply transformative eclipse for you.
You may find yourself confronting fears around control, dependence, vulnerability, shared finances, intimacy, or the possibility of losing something you’ve relied upon.
But transformation requires making space.
Something that once helped you feel safe may no longer be serving the person you’re becoming.
You don’t have to let go before you’re ready.
But you can begin asking what you’re holding onto because it is truly valuable—and what you’re holding onto because you’re afraid of what might happen without it.
Ask yourself: What am I afraid will happen if I let go?
Aquarius Rising
7th House: Relationships, Partnership & Connection
Relationships are becoming mirrors.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 7th house of partnerships and committed relationships.
Old relationship conversations may return, offering opportunities for healing, greater understanding, or a new way of relating.
You may become more aware of the stories you carry about love, commitment, partnership, and what you believe you should have to give up in order to be loved.
Relationships can reveal parts of ourselves we wouldn’t otherwise see.
The goal isn’t necessarily to preserve every relationship exactly as it is.
It’s to create relationships that have enough honesty and authenticity to evolve with you.
Ask yourself: What story do I keep repeating about love and connection?
Pisces Rising
6th House: Work, Wellness, Habits & Daily Life
Your everyday life is becoming part of the transformation.
This Total Solar Eclipse New Moon activates your 6th house of work, wellness, daily routines, habits, and service.
You don’t always need a dramatic life overhaul.
Small changes to your everyday life can create remarkable momentum.
This may be a powerful time to improve your routines, simplify your schedule, prioritize sleep, reconsider your relationship with work, or create habits that genuinely support your emotional well-being.
Pay attention to what your daily life is telling you.
Your future is built through ordinary choices repeated over time.
Ask yourself: What daily habit is no longer aligned with the person I’m becoming?
Want to Know Exactly How This New Moon Impacts Your Birth Chart?
Collective astrology reveals the weather.
Your natal chart reveals how that weather unfolds specifically for you.
This Leo Total Solar Eclipse New Moon is planting seeds that will continue unfolding through November and may culminate around January 22, 2027, when we have a Super Full Moon in Leo.
Understanding where this lunation falls in your birth chart can help you work with the energy instead of simply reacting to it.
A personalized astrology reading can help you discover:
- Where this Leo Solar Eclipse New Moon lands in your birth chart
- What new chapter is beginning over the next six months
- What emotional patterns are ready to be released
- Where you are being invited to express yourself more authentically
- How to navigate upcoming opportunities with greater clarity, confidence, and alignment
Book Your Personalized Astrology Reading with Elevated Aura
Whether you’re navigating relationships, career transitions, spiritual growth, motherhood, family changes, or major life decisions, your birth chart offers a roadmap uniquely designed for you.
I’d be honored to help you explore yours.