In the wee hours of Saturday, 3 January 2026, US special forces bombed military and power facilities in the Venezuelan capital, raiding the presidential palace in Caracas and abducting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, his wife and son, and transporting them to the US, where they face federal narcotics charges. A build-up of US naval power in the region, as well as frequent strikes at sea on alleged drug-runner boats and the seizure of two tankers supposedly carrying contraband oil, presaged the military operation on the mainland. Trump has been applying increasing pressure on Maduro to leave office, and has now stated that the US will “run” Venezuela while an interim government is established.
As above, so below: just as conditions on the ground came to a head, so, too, did celestial patterns which perfectly describe the situation. PNAs (Personal-Named Asteroids) for both countries have been in flux over the past few months, coming to station and signifying major turning points in the conflict between them, coinciding with key moments in the escalating tensions. A station of asteroid Caracas 11083 came just two days after the initial US strike on Venezuelan shipping on September 2, while the first tanker seizure on December 10 was preceded by asteroid Washingtonia 886 coming to station four days prior. On December 26, Trump previewed the Caracas attack by bombing a Venezuelan dock allegedly used to load drugs on ships, two days after asteroid America 916 turned retrograde, upping the ante further. And on the day of Maduro’s abduction, asteroid Venezuela 9357 entered its station degree of 0 Gemini (with the actual station to follow on January 14).
The proximate trigger for the raid was a Full Moon occurring at 13 Cancer/Capricorn just hours later, which touched off both countries’ charts, as well as the birth charts of both leaders. The Moon exactly conjoined the US Sun, as well as Venezuela’s precise Sun/asteroid Nichol 163641 conjunction at 12 Cancer (with Venezuela’s independence on 5 July 1811, 3 PM LMT, Rodden Rating A), with Nichol acting as celestial stand-in for Nicolas, for which there is no exact match. In Donald Trump’s chart, the Moon conjoined asteroid Nemesis 128 at 16 Cancer, noted as the bringer of ruin and destruction, while it opposed Maduro’s natal Nemesis at 18 Capricorn (born 23 November 1962, 9:03 PM LMT in Caracas, Rodden Rating C). (Trump’s cosmic fingerprints are all over Maduro’s downfall, with transit asteroid Donn 4689 exactly opposed his natal Nemesis from 18 Cancer, and transit Troemper in semisquare from 2 Sagittarius.)
That’s impressive enough, but this Full Moon was no ordinary lunation. In tow with the Sun were Venus, Mars, and TNOs Ixion 28978 and Quaoar 50000, at 12, 14, 7 and 11 Capricorn respectively. This suggests armed conflict (Mars) with a focus (Sun) on natural resources (Venus), in this case, Venezuela’s oil, largest confirmed reserves on the planet. Indeed, this seems to be much of Trump’s focus, with statements to the effect that US oil companies will be taking over the managing and upgrading of the country’s oil infrastructure.
Ixion and Quaoar here also help to identify the US President as central to the proceedings (Sun conjunction), as discerned by dwarf planet expert Sue Kientz, who sees Trump as the former casino owner (Quaoar, representing playing games, taking risks or gambling) and norm defier (Ixion, mythic breaker of rules, overturning norms) now in charge of the US military (Mars).
Adding fuel to the fire, a square from TNO Makemake 135472 and asteroid Nichol at 12 and 8 Libra, and a sesquiquadrate to Uranus and asteroid Venezuela, at 27 Taurus and 1 Gemini. Sue Kientz describes Makemake’s energy as “symbolic of sudden unexpected moves, so disturbing as to smack of irrationality,” while Uranus is noted for its capriciousness, volatility, and sudden, swift actions which are controversial. Nichol again references Maduro directly, placing him in the spotlight (solar square), while Venezuela defines the field of operations.
Maduro is also represented by asteroid Nicole 1343, a feminine equivalent, which at 9 Scorpio squares Pluto at 2 Aquarius, ruler of criminal acts. This may be seen as the drug trade Maduro allegedly perpetrated, or the possibly illegal seizure of his person by the US, or both. Nicole further conjoins asteroid Justitia 269 at 6 Scorpio, named for the Roman goddess of justice, denoting Maduro’s upcoming prosecution by the US Department of Justice.
Pluto has another meaning, one related to abduction, based in the mythic Hades/Pluto’s kidnapping of his niece Persephone/Proserpina, to force her to marry him. Both Nichol and Nicole are in aspect to Pluto (by trine and square), as well as asteroid Persephone 399 at 8 Pisces (inconjunct and trine), with Nichol also semisquare asteroid Proserpin 7292 at 21 Scorpio, named for Persephone’s Roman counterpart.
The capture and abduction of Maduro in his Caracas residence is presaged in his birth chart, with a conjunction of asteroids Proserpin and Caracas at 21 and 23 Libra, also conjoined the natal Moon at 25 Libra, conflating his kidnapping in his own capital, in his own home (Moon). This is mirrored in real time by a square between these points, with Proserpin at 21 Scorpio and Caracas at 24 Aquarius. As well, Venezuela’s natal Persephone at 13 Capricorn aligns precisely with the Sun, opposing its natal Sun and T-Squared natal Caracas at 8 Libra. Note that transit Nichol is exactly conjoined Venezuela’s natal Caracas, placing the president on-site in the capital for the raid.
Conflict between the two countries is further imaged by a square from asteroid America at 2 Virgo to asteroid Venezuela at 1 Gemini. This is augmented and transformed into a Grand Cross with Damocles 5335 at 0 Pisces, representing the unsuspected doom or peril about to descend at any moment, and asteroid Troemper 28130 at 2 Sagittarius, our celestial referent for Donald Trump. This ties strongly to Maduro’s chart, which features a Mercury/Sun pairing at 0 and 1 Sagittarius (conjoined by transit Troemper), a Nichol/Uranus union at 1 and 5 Virgo (conjoined transit America), and Jupiter at 3 Pisces, ruling politics (conjoined transit Damocles). This suggests a looming threat (Damocles) of political (Jupiter) upheaval (Uranus) in Venezuela (Venezuela) generally, and for Nicholas (Nichol) Maduro personally (Sun), provoked by Donald Trump (Troemper) and the US (America), which makes major news (Mercury).
Throughout the autumn, asteroids Washingtonia 886 and Caracas had also been opposed, underscoring the open animosity between the two governments. With Washingtonia’s retrograde back-off last month, this aspect has dwindled in force, with Washingtonia currently at 16 Leo and Caracas at 24 Aquarius, now some 8 degrees wide in orb. But the gap in jingoistic intention has been filled by a tight square from asteroid Bellona 28 at 25 Scorpio, named for the Roman goddess of war.
This aligns with Venezuela’s natal Mars/Ascendant conjunction at 24 and 26 Scorpio, also incorporating natal asteroid Venezuela at 27 Scorpio, again speaking of military action (Mars, Bellona) directed at the oil-rich state (Venezuela) and its public image (Ascendant). Also in this mix, transit asteroid Themis 24 at 26 Scorpio, named for the Greek goddess of justice, and Maduro’s natal asteroid Justitia at 24 Scorpio, allowing Trump to frame this a “just (Themis/Justitia) war (Mars/Bellona),” more of a law enforcement matter than a regime change.
While Maduro and his family are out of the picture, the rest of his regime remains intact, with Venezuelan courts designating Vice President Delcy Rodriguez as his successor. So far, she seems unwilling to toe the Trump administration line on her country’s future, prompting speculation that the transformation of political power will not stop with Maduro. The presence of transit asteroid Rodriguez 1360 at 1 Sagittarius, conjunct Maduro’s Sun and transit Troemper, feeding into that Mutable Grand Cross, suggests she’ll be his next target. Indeed, she’s already been warned that capitulation to his whim is essential for survival, with Trump stating “If she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.”
A likely replacement would be Maria Corina Machado, exiled leader of the opposition, whose surrogate candidate won the elections in July 2024, only to be excluded from power by Maduro, who falsified the results. Like Maduro, with asteroid Nichol conjunct Venezuela’s natal Sun, Machado has a celestial claim on the presidency, as asteroid Maria 170 at 9 Cancer conjunct the Sun, and asteroid Machado 2543 at 14 Libra, in square. But Trump has signaled that she is not in the running for the job, as per his dictates, stating she doesn’t have the “respect” to helm the state (leaving it unclear as to whose respect he’s referring, his or the Venezuelan people’s).
However, transit asteroid Machado at 13 Gemini is exactly inconjunct the Sun for the raid, implying a need for adjustment or accommodation of some sort. Machado comes to its station direct on January 30 at 10 Gemini, indicating a major change of direction or fortune for the opposition leader. Squared Venezuela’s natal asteroid Troemper at 16 Virgo, perhaps Mr. Trump will have one of his notorious changes of heart regarding her suitability for the presidency.
Alex Miller is a professional writer and astrologer, whose website AlexAsteroidAstrology.com offers a trove of info on the role of asteroids in personal and mundane astrology. He is the author of The Black Hole Book (available on Amazon.com) and The Urban Wicca, former editor of “The Galactic Calendar,” and past president of The Philadelphia Astrological Society. His pioneering work with Black Holes in astrological interpretation began in 1991, when his progressed Sun unwittingly fell into one. Alex’s books and writings are available on his website. Alex can also be reached for comment or services at .
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