Mercury retrograde dates in 2004
Mercury turns retrograde 3 times in 2004 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 2004
Turns direct
Tuesday 6 January 2004, 15:44
Sagittarius 26°
Turns retrograde
Tuesday 6 April 2004, 23:24
Taurus 1°
Turns direct
Friday 30 April 2004, 16:07
Aries 21°
Turns retrograde
Tuesday 10 August 2004, 03:38
Virgo 8°
Turns direct
Thursday 2 September 2004, 16:06
Leo 25°
Turns retrograde
Tuesday 30 November 2004, 14:17
Sagittarius 26°
Turns direct
Monday 20 December 2004, 08:33
Sagittarius 10°
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.