Mercury retrograde dates in 1978
Mercury turns retrograde 3 times in 1978 and is already retrograde on 1 January.
Mercury is the fastest planet and turns retrograde more often than any other, about three times a year. Each retrograde lasts between 20 and 24 days, and the start of one comes 108 to 125 days after the start of the last.
Mercury stays near the Sun in the sky, and its retrograde happens when it passes between the Earth and the Sun. In tradition Mercury stands for thinking, speech and travel, and astrologers who follow retrogrades read a Mercury retrograde as a time to revisit them. That is a tradition of interpretation, not a measured effect.
Stations in 1978
Turns direct
Sunday 1 January 1978, 00:03
Sagittarius 21°
Turns retrograde
Saturday 1 April 1978, 18:17
Aries 26°
Turns direct
Tuesday 25 April 1978, 09:47
Aries 14°
Turns retrograde
Saturday 5 August 1978, 02:10
Virgo 3°
Turns direct
Monday 28 August 1978, 18:36
Leo 20°
Turns retrograde
Saturday 25 November 1978, 23:38
Sagittarius 21°
Turns direct
Friday 15 December 1978, 17:57
Sagittarius 5°
Stations are found by Astrely's own code from the planets' positions and are shown in Nicosia time. Mercury's stations are checked against NASA/JPL Horizons to within four minutes; the outer planets move so slowly around a station that their times are best read to the day. The method page has the details.
Astrology is a tradition of interpretation. What is written here is traditional, offered for reflection and entertainment, not advice and not a prediction.