Everything you need to know for tomorrow's solar eclipse

Happy almost Solar Eclipse! In today’s newsletter, we’re so excited to welcome one of Lora’s expert astrologers and spiritual practitioners, Lauren Hansen (aka astrobetch on IG and TikTok), to share more about this upcoming Eclipse and what it means for you! Lauren’s also…

By the Lora Team — August 11, 2026 — 6 min read

How to know if the Solar Eclipse in Leo impacts you + How the South Node affects us all

By Lauren Hansen

Wow – we haven’t experienced a full-blown eclipse in the sign of Leo since August of 2018! But that was back when the North Node was in Leo – now we’re dealing with the South Node in Leo. Certainly, a different flavor!

On Wednesday, August 12th, this Solar/New Moon Eclipse will be exact at 10:36 am PST. The Sun and Moon align at 20° Leo, close enough to the South Node at 29° Leo to make this an eclipse.

While any eclipse can mark an important turning point, a moment of crisis, chaos, or recalibration…Have you noticed that eclipses happen every six months, yet your life doesn’t seem to drastically shift every time? Unless you were born under an eclipse, or shall I say, within the “eclipse window,” it’s quite doubtful that you are deeply impacted by every single eclipse. For those of you curious to know if you were born close enough to an eclipse to be considered born under one: An “eclipse window” is mostly accepted as starting 10 days before the first eclipse of the pair (eclipses almost always come in pairs) and up to 10 days after the last, or second eclipse. Some astrologers do feel the window begins a whole 2 weeks before the first eclipse, and up to 2 weeks after the last one - you can decide for yourself. Check online for the eclipses that occurred within your birth year and then see if your birthdate is close by!

So, how can you predict if this Total Solar Eclipse in Leo will impact you? Firstly, it might be obvious already – since we’re well within the eclipse window! The wild events, reveals, realizations, and/or surprises could be happening already. If you haven’t noticed anything unusual going down yet…You can pull up your birth chart + follow these simple steps:

Find where 20° Leo falls – in what house? If the house is the 1st, 4th, 7th, or 10th, that means it’s likely you’re impacted by this eclipse.
Are any of your angles (the AC, DC, MC, or IC) within a few degrees (17° - 23° Leo) of this eclipse? Highly impacted!
Do you have any personal planets (your Sun, moon, Mercury, Venus, or Mars) within a few degrees (17° - 23° Leo) of this eclipse? Certainly impacted!
If the answer was no to all of the above – let’s take it a step further. Those of you with any of your angles or personal planets falling between 17° - 23° of Aquarius, Taurus, or Scorpio – you also have a likelihood of being impacted!

On some level, even if it’s a whisper, I believe we’re all affected by eclipses. But, to get the big juice – the major beginnings + endings – one or more of the above is probably true. Leo is within your 7th house, or you’re a Leo with your Sun at 18°, or your MC is at 20° Taurus, or your moon is at 22° Aquarius, etc.

If none of the above was true for you, you can read our last article, which goes over how each Rising Sign is generally impacted by this whole eclipse cycle – the Leo-Aquarius eclipse cycle which is now well underway and lasts through March of 2028.

But hang on - I mentioned how our last major Leo eclipse (in 2018) involved the North Node as opposed to the South Node. Let me shed some light on how having this flip of the lunar nodes changes the message of this whole eclipse cycle!

Between May 2017 and November 2018, the North Node was in Leo, and therefore the South Node was in Aquarius. We had various eclipses in Leo, which encouraged us to embrace our selfhood, first and foremost. To unapologetically shine, follow our hearts, and even go after a bit of recognition and attention! Also, to lead our lives with more confidence.

Now that the South Node is in Leo and the North Node is in Aquarius (July 2026 - March 2028), you could say that the cosmos are supporting or prompting us to still shine, lead, and express – but not for the sake of satisfying our individual selves. This flip of the lunar nodes beckons us to be our best Leo-selves in a way that positively influences others or contributes to something greater than ourselves! It’s about learning to consider your audience, clients, friends, teams, community, the whole collective.

The funny thing is, I always advise my Leo clients to work on this – to embrace the energy of Aquarius. The opposing sign always has the answers to a higher vibrational version of self! A Leo who doesn’t care about their impact on others (Aquarius) tends to be especially self-absorbed, and they don’t shine nearly as brightly as they could. A Virgo who doesn’t lean into Pisces energy is hell-bent on things always “making sense,” having order and fixing issues – struggling greatly when the magic of mess and chaos comes around, and when intuition is tap tap tapping on their window. Have you met an overtly aggressive Aries? Without a little Libra, they end up regretfully burning bridges and treating life like a constant competition.

So! This eclipse cycle can help you do much more with your light, and maybe with a bit more purpose.

Additionally, keep in mind that since this upcoming eclipse is a Leo new moon, the South Node’s energy is emphasized. When we later have an Aquarius new moon eclipse, the energy of the North Node will be accessed. The South Node feels like + represents:

Letting go, shedding old skin, releasing something or someone. It could reflect having something taken away from you as well, being forced to accept an ending. You could have lower energy, feeling tired or drained. Before you get all down and out about these themes – understand that if events like this occur, the idea is that they are assisting you in your evolution. Perhaps, with Leo in mind: Assisting you in letting go of seeking validation, shedding a piece of you that desires attention, releasing a habit, person, gig, whatever, that you’ve outgrown.

If you want to know more, I recommend studying the house Leo falls into for you! That way, you’re aware of what area of your life the South Node is encouraging this metamorphosis – this ending. You can also attend my lecture, which is on the meaning behind this specific eclipse on August 12th at 3:30 pm PST. RSVP here!