# What Sign Is Mars in Right Now? Is Mars Retrograde? > Mars is in Leo right now, at 1°48' Leo as of October 1, 2026 at 04:42 UTC. Mars entered Leo on September 27, 2026 at 10:49 PM ET (02:49 UTC on September 28) and stays until November 25, 2026 at 6:37 PM ET (23:37 UTC), when it moves into Virgo. Mars is direct, not retrograde. Computed October 1, 2026 at 04:42 UTC. Canonical page: https://www.selfgazer.com/sky/mars | Body | Sign | Position | Motion | In sign since | Next sign change | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Mars | Leo | 1°48'08" Leo | direct | 2026-09-28 | 2026-11-25 23:37 UTC into Virgo | ## Retrograde No. Mars is direct as of October 1, 2026 at 04:42 UTC. Its next retrograde begins on January 10, 2027 at 8:01 AM ET (13:01 UTC) at 10°25' Virgo and ends on April 1, 2027. | Planet | Stations retrograde | Stations direct | Signs | Shadow | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Mars | 2024-12-06 23:33 UTC at 6°10' Leo | 2025-02-24 02:01 UTC at 17°00' Cancer | Leo, Cancer | 2024-10-05 to 2025-05-02 | | Mars | 2027-01-10 13:01 UTC at 10°25' Virgo | 2027-04-01 14:11 UTC at 20°55' Leo | Virgo, Leo | 2026-11-05 to 2027-06-08 | ## Sign Changes | Date (UTC) | Enters | Leaves | Retrograde | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-01-23 09:16 UTC | Aquarius | Capricorn | no | | 2026-03-02 14:15 UTC | Pisces | Aquarius | no | | 2026-04-09 19:36 UTC | Aries | Pisces | no | | 2026-05-18 22:26 UTC | Taurus | Aries | no | | 2026-06-28 19:29 UTC | Gemini | Taurus | no | | 2026-08-11 08:31 UTC | Cancer | Gemini | no | | 2026-09-28 02:49 UTC | Leo | Cancer | no | | 2026-11-25 23:37 UTC | Virgo | Leo | no | | 2027-02-21 14:15 UTC | Leo | Virgo | yes | | 2027-05-14 14:47 UTC | Virgo | Leo | no | | 2027-07-15 05:40 UTC | Libra | Virgo | no | | 2027-09-02 01:51 UTC | Scorpio | Libra | no | | 2027-10-15 23:13 UTC | Sagittarius | Scorpio | no | | 2027-11-25 18:37 UTC | Capricorn | Sagittarius | no | ## Aspects in the Next 30 Days | Date (UTC) | Event | Detail | | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-10-02 09:15 UTC | Mercury square Mars | Exact square | | 2026-10-02 22:26 UTC | Mars trine Neptune | Exact trine | | 2026-10-03 10:38 UTC | Mars opposite Pluto | Exact opposition | | 2026-10-07 10:41 UTC | Mars sextile Uranus | Exact sextile | | 2026-10-10 21:21 UTC | Venus square Mars | Exact square | | 2026-10-16 08:25 UTC | Mars trine Saturn | Exact trine | | 2026-10-30 17:21 UTC | Mercury square Mars | Exact square | ## Questions ### What Sign Is Mars in Right Now? Mars is in Leo right now, at 1°48' Leo as of October 1, 2026 at 04:42 UTC. Mars entered Leo on September 27, 2026 at 10:49 PM ET (02:49 UTC on September 28) and stays until November 25, 2026 at 6:37 PM ET (23:37 UTC), when it moves into Virgo. Mars is direct, not retrograde. ### Is Mars Retrograde Right Now? No. Mars is direct as of October 1, 2026 at 04:42 UTC. Its next retrograde begins on January 10, 2027 at 8:01 AM ET (13:01 UTC) at 10°25' Virgo and ends on April 1, 2027. ### When Is the Next Mars Retrograde? The next Mars retrograde begins on January 10, 2027 at 8:01 AM ET (13:01 UTC) at 10°25' Virgo and ends on April 1, 2027 at 10:11 AM ET (14:11 UTC) at 20°55' Leo. The shadow period runs from November 5, 2026 to June 8, 2027. ### What Does Mars in Leo Mean? Mars represents drive, desire, anger, courage, competition, and physical energy. In Leo, those themes take on a warm, expressive, proud, and creative quality. Mars's sign shows where collective effort and friction go. A Mars retrograde traditionally redirects action inward and slows new initiatives. ### How Long Does Mars Stay in Each Sign? Mars spends about six to seven weeks in a sign. Roughly every 26 months it turns retrograde for about ten to eleven weeks, which can hold it in one sign or a pair of signs for six months or more. ### Why Do Some Sites List a Different Date for This Sign Change? Most astrology sites print a single date without a time zone. An ingress at 10:49 PM in New York is already the next day in London and Sydney, so two correct sources can disagree by a day. Selfgazer gives every time in both US Eastern time and UTC, and the tables switch to your own time zone in the browser. ## Method Positions are geocentric and tropical: apparent longitudes on the true ecliptic and equinox of date, corrected for light time and aberration. They are computed with the open-source Astronomy Engine library (VSOP87 planetary theory) and agree with the Swiss Ephemeris to within about one arcminute. The North Node is the mean node. Times are given in UTC and US Eastern time. Source: [Selfgazer](https://www.selfgazer.com/sky/mars). Free to cite with a link to the source page.