Longevity

[Jim Eshelman]

In writing on Jimmy Carter's chart (in contrast to Truman Capote's), on the issue of longevity I wrote the following:

One of their greatest differences is the length of their lives and quality of their health. On the issue of longevity, we have statistics only for luminary sign data and then casual observation on the rest...

Carter’s endurance and perseverance are well known. As I write this, he is 99 years old and has moved into long-term home hospice care. While both his parents and all of his siblings died of pancreatic cancer, he has never had a sign of it, his one cancer event being a 2015 melanoma in his brain and liver from which he fully recovered (cancer free)... A near centenarian, he continues to be active, claiming that the secret of longevity (here goes that Libra Moon again) is a good marriage.

In contrast, Capote, who lived to age 59, had multiple health concerns late in life, many of which were connected to his increasing alcohol and drug abuse. Eventually dying of liver disease, earlier he had experienced hallucinations and seizures. Like Carter, perhaps his most important issue involved the head region: Doctors found his brain had shrunk (lost mass). “Shrunken brain” and “lost brain mass” are almost literal renderings of Saturn (shrinking) conjunct Moon (health focus) in Libra (the head).

But, speaking of Saturn, the closely angular Saturn is likely the best indication of Carter’s longevity. It seems he simply has endured and persisted. Although length of life was discussed in astrology texts nearly two millennia ago, I know of nothing that reliably shows it and can stand the rigors of statistical examination. One issue, of course, is that we are only now coming into a time when birth records (including birth times) are available for people born a century ago. The next 20 years may give an opportunity to explore this better.

Astrological tradition claims that Saturn is kinder to the old than the young: that, while often showing hardship and struggles in youth, Saturn preserves, strengthens, and rewards people in advanced years. One is tempted to believe this on seeing that long-lived celebrities like George Burns and Betty White had Capricorn Suns.

In any case, this one feature – angular Saturn – stands most abruptly at odds with the angular planets at Capote’s birth. Capote’s angular Neptune introduces themes like frailty, convalescence, and dependency. Mars (in contrast to Saturn) burns hard and fast, often burning itself out. And yet, Betty White and Queen Elizabeth II both had Mars and Neptune closely angular, so the answer is not that simple. (Elizabeth also had Saturn closely angular, and White had the aforementioned Capricorn Sun.)

One can easily see – in more general terms – that Carter’s chart is more prone to prudence, care, and conscientious choices, and Capote’s is more prone to unhealthy life choices, living hard, and burning out fast. Capote’s only strong Saturn was the debilitating Saturn conjunction with a background Moon (a common mark of health vulnerabilities).

We still have important things to learn.

[Jim Eshelman]

I've gathered a list of celebrities who lived and were still going strong into their 80s and 90s (or more) - still working now or until fairly recently. I don't know yet how many I have timed charts for, but I think it's a bunch. I'm going to dig through them and try to learn something better than we already know (which is more or less nothing, though I'm looking closely at this Saturn idea).

Here's the list I'll start working with:

104 - Elisabeth Waldo - no time
101 - Iris Apfel - no time
101 - Ray Anthony no time
100 - [George Burns] - no time
100 - Jacqueline White - AA
100 - Janis Paige - A
100 - Norman Lear - no time

99 - [Betty White] - AA
99 - Bob Barker - AA
99 - Mike Nussbaum - no time
98 - Jimmy Carter
98 - Eva Marie Saint - AA
98 - Joyce Randolph - no time
97 - Dick Van Dyke - C ("evening" interpreted as 9 PM, seems very close)
97 - Shecky Greene - no time
97 - David Attenborough - no time
96 - [Harry Belafonte] - AA
96 - [Queen Elizabeth II] - AA
96 - Mel Brooks - no time
96 - William Daniels - no time
96 - Tony Bennett - no time
95 - Rosemary Harris - no time
93 - Tippi Hedren - AA
93 - Bob Newhart - AA
93 - John Astin - no time
91 - Rita Moreno - no time
90 - Kim Novak - AA

89 - Richard Chamberlain - AA
88 - Sophia Loren - AA
87 - Kris Kristofferson AA
87 - Alan Alda - A
87 - Julie Andrews - B
86 - Billie Dee Williams - AA
86 - Morgan Freeman - A
86 - Vanessa Redgrave - B
85 - Max Baer Jr - AA
85 - Dustin Hoffman - AA
85 - Anthony Hopkins - A
85 - Jane Fonda - AA
84 - Jon Voight - A
84 - Christopher Lloyd - no time
83 - [Tina Turner] - AA
83 - Lily Tomlin - AA
83 - Nancy Sinatra AA
83 - George Hamilton - A
82 - Neil Diamond - AA
82 - Martin Sheen - AA
82 - Ann-Margaret - A
82 - Ringo Starr - B
81 - Barbra Streisand - AA
81 - Carole King - AA
81 - Paul Simon - AA
81 - Brian Wilson - AA
81 - Paul McCartney - A
81 - Art Garfunkel - C
81 - Chubby Checker - no time
81 - Pete Best - no time
80 - Joseph Biden - A

[Jim Eshelman]

Sun
Tau:
Gem: 3
Can: 2
Leo: 3
Vir: 2
Lib: 1
Sco: 4
Sag: 1
Cap: 4
Aqu: 2
Pis: 3
Ari: 2

Moon
Tau: 1
Gem: 2
Can: 4
Leo: 2
Vir: 5
Lib: 2
Sco: 3
Sag: 1
Cap: 3
Aqu: 3
Pis: 3
Ari:

Foreground [Classes 1 & 2]
Moo: 1 / 0
Sun: 0 / 1
Mer: 2 / 0
Ven: 2 / 1
Mar: 4 / 2
Jup: 0 / 2
Sat: 6 / 1
Ura: 1 / 1
Nep: 0 / 3
Plu: 0 / 2

Aspects [Classes 1: Hard/Soft]
Mo-Su: 0 / 3
Mo-Me: 2 / 1
Mo-Ve: 1 / 1
Mo-Ma: 6 / 0
Mo-Ju: 5 / 2
Mo-Sa: 3 / 1
Mo-Ur: 3 / 1
Mo-Ne: 2 / 0
Mo-Pl: 0 / 1
Su-Me: 4
Su-Ve: 1
Su-Ma: 1 / 1
Su-Ju: 3 / 2
Su-Sa: 2 / 2
Su-Ur: 2 / 0
Su-Ne: 0 / 1
Su-Pl: 3 / 0
Me-Ve: 2 / 3
Me-Ma: 3 / 1
Me-Ju: 1 / 2
Me-Sa: 2 / 1
Me-Ur: 3 / 2
Me-Ne: 1 / 5
Me-Pl: 1 / 2
Ve-Ma: 2 / 1
Ve-Ju: 3 / 0
Ve-Sa: 1 / 1
Ve-Ur: 3 / 2
Ve-Ne: 2 / 0
Ve-Pl: 1 / 2
Ma-Ju: 3 / 1
Ma-Sa: 1 / 2
Ma-Ur: 2 / 1
Ma-Ne: 5 / 0
Ma-Pl: 1 / 0
Ju-Sa: 4 / 1
Ju-Ur: 3 / 1
Ju-Ne: 4 / 1
Ju-Pl: 2 / 1
Sa-Ur: 2 / 4
Sa-Ne: 4 / 2
Sa-Pl: 3 / 0

[Jim Eshelman]

Sun
Tau: 2
Gem: 4
Can: 3
Leo: 1
Vir: 4
Lib: 2
Sco: 3
Sag: 3
Cap: 4
Aqu:
Pis: 2
Ari: 2

Moon
Tau: 2
Gem: 4
Can: 6
Leo: 2
Vir: 3
Lib: 1
Sco: 1
Sag: 3
Cap: 2
Aqu: 2
Pis: 3
Ari: 1

Foreground [Classes 1 & 2]
Moo: 4 / 4
Sun: 4 / 4
Mer: 0 / 2
Ven: 2 / 4
Mar: 4 / 1
Jup: 2 / 3
Sat: 1 / 3
Ura: 4 / 2
Nep: 3 / 4
Plu: 1 / 6

Aspects [Classes 1: Hard/Soft]
Mo-Su: 3 / 0
Mo-Me: 4 / 1
Mo-Ve: 3 / 4
Mo-Ma: 5 / 0
Mo-Ju: 3 / 3
Mo-Sa: 1 / 2
Mo-Ur: 2 / 0
Mo-Ne: 3 / 1
Mo-Pl: 5 / 4
Su-Me: 3
Su-Ve: 4
Su-Ma: 4 / 3
Su-Ju: 2 / 2
Su-Sa: 4 / 1
Su-Ur: 2 / 1
Su-Ne: 2 / 0
Su-Pl: 4 / 2
Me-Ve: 2 / 0
Me-Ma: 5 / 2
Me-Ju: 0 / 2
Me-Sa: 2 / 0
Me-Ur: 3 / 1
Me-Ne: 1 / 3
Me-Pl: 4 / 0
Ve-Ma: 4 / 0
Ve-Ju: 2 / 2
Ve-Sa: 4 / 2
Ve-Ur: 2 / 3
Ve-Ne: 4 / 2
Ve-Pl: 3 / 4
Ma-Ju: 1 / 2
Ma-Sa: 2 / 2
Ma-Ur: 3 / 5
Ma-Ne: 2 / 3
Ma-Pl: 3 / 1
Ju-Sa: 4 / 2
Ju-Ur:
Ju-Ne: 2 / 2
Ju-Pl: 8 / 0
Sa-Ur: 4 / 2
Sa-Ne: 1 / 3
Sa-Pl: 4 / 6

[Jim Eshelman]

A preliminary observation: of the six celebrities I just tabulated who have continued working and thriving at age 100 or later, the one thing they have in common is that every one of them has a powerful Saturn natal presence. These are all different: Two have Capricorn Suns, one a Capricorn Moon, one an exactly angular Saturn, and the rest have close luminary hard aspects.

This is far too few to generalize YET, but, at the moment, it does look like we may be headed to a conclusion that the old rule is true: Saturn is really hard on the young and a blessing for the old.

Also, there is a strange presence of a few more Mars-Neptune hard aspects than all the rest. There is no mathematical reason for this that I can see. I am curious to see if this will persist.

[Jim Eshelman]

Preliminary conclusions (first impressions) on those still going strong at age 90 or longer...

It does seem that the sturdy, surviving planets are the strongest factors. Nonetheless, in this entire study we must deal with the fact that these are celebrity charts and, therefore, some of the highs and lows we see may be due to that alone, and not a longevity factors as such. (A simple example: There are proportionately more Jupiter-Neptune aspects, but I think this is simply the successful entertainer factor.

Sun signs
With about two occurrences expected per sign, Scorpio and Capricorn pull four each, leading the pack. In contrast, the only sign with zero occurrences is Taurus.

This is at odds with the Bradley (admittedly more sophisticated) study showing Earth sign Suns dominant. It matches his results for Capricorn but not for Taurus. Breaking these signs down by such groupings, Sun signs are distributed evenly by quadruplicity but unevenly in triplicity, with 9 'Water' seeming a slight preference. This may, however, merely be the Scorpio strength supported by a slightly higher (but ultimately average) Pisces.

The main observations are that Scorpio and Capricorn are most common and Taurus absent.

Moon signs
Where about two are expected on average, Virgo stands out stunningly at five (and one of the untimed births might have been a Virgo Moon also, being late Leo at noon.) Aries shows up zero times. This doesn't match any prior theory about longevity that comes to mind (and Moon may not be a specific factor in longevity).

Bradley's large study of luminary signs showed Hub Moons living the longest and Rim means the least likely. With these examples, there is an inference of the same since Rims rank lowest (with Libra-Aries dragging it down, since Cancer-Capricorn are fine). I think it's best to note that there is no quadruplicity or triplicity distinction. (Aries = 0 does drag the 'Fire' signs to a clear low, but this isn't even across the others.)

Sun + Moon signs
Combining Sun signs and Moon signs, we get few surprises. The highs and lows of the separate lists are mirrored in the combined, with Virgo, Scorpio, and Capricorn scoring highest and Taurus and Aries scoring lowest. These effects on opposite sides of the zodiac are not an annual birth-rate factor, plus Sun and Moon have different probabilities; the "opposite side" factor is probably not a statistical artifact.

Quadruplicities and triplicities were not significant.

I'm not sure there are conclusions to draw here - it just seems to echo what we saw above. We'll see how this looks when the octogenarians are folded in.

Angularities
Saturn easily topped the list with six close (Class 1) angularities when no other planet (except Mars at 4) had more than three. Sun, despite its connection to vitality, did not show for longevity, having NO close angularities and only one when wider (Class 2) angularities were considered. (Neptune and Pluto were the same).

When Class 2 angularities were included, Mars nearly tied Saturn. The "survival" planets came out on top easily. Luminaries, Jupiter, and Pluto were the lowest.

These tallies have very limited use, especially because there were few timed births in this set. Nonetheless, the Saturn and Mars tops (and weak Sun) are most interesting and I suspect we'll be seeing something similar as we go.

Aspects
Considering Class 1 hard aspects only, Moon-Mars topped the list with six. Close behind at five was Mars-Neptune (which I saw tending higher for the 100+ list) and, at four, Sun-Mercury conjunctions (which has different probabilities than other aspects but is not usually high - so this is interesting since it almost never shows up).

These are all quite interesting. Mars-Neptune isn't an aspect anybody has singled out as likely for longevity in the past and perhaps refers to passionate engagement with life. ALL the aspects were hard, no soft. Moon-Mars is interesting since (with many untimed births) we would expect a lower number of Moon aspects, and Mars showed strongly for Sun-sign rulership and angularity.

Of soft aspects ONLY, there was an interesting excess of Mercury-Neptune trines and sextiles (five). I mention this not because I think it's a longevity factor (it may only be an entertainment or celebrity factor) but because some of these charts, on casual observation, seem to me to show the experiences of living to an advanced age - things being harder, having higher dependence, and even perhaps different workings of the brain (as in Mercury trine or sextile Neptune).

When soft and hard aspects are combined, Moon-Jupiter aspects suddenly stand out with Sun-Jupiter right behind. I'm not sure what this means (if anything) except, perhaps, that after struggle and survival factors take the lead, luck and advantage make the best back-up. We also get all combinations of Mercury, Venus, and Uranus strong which might be an entertainment factor or might show a sparkle and interest in life that extends youthfulness. - We'll have to see how this shakes out with the second half of the data.

Sun-Neptune and Moon-Neptune aspects (all major aspects combined) are among the lowest. I don't know if this means these Neptune aspects reduce the chances of living past 90, or merely reduce the chances of living past 90 and continuing to be lucid, productive, and engaged in life. Moon-Pluto and Mars-Pluto are equally low, which I currently think is because they are less likely to live that long (more prone to diseases, hospitalization, and immune system over- or under-performance).

I will later combine these with the octogenarians and also contrast them to see if trends are affected by how far into advanced age one gets.

[Jim Eshelman]

With people still going strong in their 80s, the pattern is quite different! A first conclusion, then, is that "old" now begins at 90, not at 80. I think in the current set we have much more pollution from what the chart is showing about the rest of their lives. For one thing, the great rise in Cancer and Gemini luminary placements corresponds to the numbers of actors and musicians (respectively) in the list, something that didn't sneak into the numbers in the 90+ set.

Sun signs
Capricorn persists as tied for the top spot, though now it is tied with Gemini and Virgo. (We saw Virgo for Moon in 90+, but not for Sun. I take Gemini to suggest greater youthfulness, and perhaps Virgo has that, too - or at least that the mind continues active and productive.) Aquarius is the only Sun-sign with no examples.

Because of the Gemini and Virgo peaks, Spoke Suns lead (with Hubs at the bottom due to Leo and Aquarius being the very lowest - it seems pretty evenly spread through all the Hubs with only Scorpio reaching average). The triplicities are ordinary (though Capricorn and Virgo drive Earth slightly high, matching the Bradley study but not in degree, and not with a Taurus showing).

Moon signs
Moon signs are quite different, with six in Cancer and four in Gemini - showing, I think, the actors and musicians in the set, and not the longevity factor. (I'm not persuaded Moon sign is strongly connected to longevity.) Aries and Libra remain lowest (but tied with Scorpio).

Even with Aries and Libra so low, the other Rims float them to average with Spokes slightly leading. The triplicities are statistically even (though again with slight bumps up for Water and down for Fire.) Consider no statistical unusualness for quadruplicities or triplicities.

Sun + Moon signs
I think these aren't significant. The true peaks in Cancer and Gemini seem to be reflecting the performers in this age group. I don't think they are longevity factors any more than I think the low in Aquarius is meaningful.

Triplicities have Spoke high and Hub low. The triplicities are all fairly evenly distributed.

Angularities
The Saturn effect of the 90+ disappears entirely. (I suspect this is because "old" in the statistical sense doesn't start until 90.) In fact, with Class 1 angularities there is nothing statistically unusual and Saturn is among the lower.

Stretching to Class 2 changes this a little. Among other things, planets least angular in the 90+ are among the most common here. Highest are Sun and Moon - and Sun was lowest before - encouraging my belief that the celebrity aspect is showing through more. Neptune and Pluto come behind (I have various thoughts about this, including suspecting the topics that most dominate 80-something-year-olds' thoughts.)

Aspects
Aspects were relatively boring. First, there were clearly aspects that reflect celebrity and consequent fame or wealth, starting with the big champ, Jupiter-Pluto (8 hard aspects, no soft aspects).

Otherwise, though, the most common hard aspect was Moon-Mars, exactly as in the 90+ list. Despite its connection to inflammation and infection, this seems to be an aspect of iron endurance. Moon-Pluto tied it, a low aspect for the 90+ list. Mars-Neptune does not continue strong as I thought it might.

Combining hard and soft aspects, we get a different picture than last time. Here are the highest and lowest results. Make of them what you will:

9: Moon-Pluto
8: Mars-Uranus
7: Moon-Venus, Sun-Mars, Mercury-Mars, Venus-Pluto
-----
2: Moon-Uranus, Sun-Neptune, Mercury-Venus, Mercury-Jupiter- Mercury-Saturn

The next step is to combine them to see how the totals look, and then to contrast them.

[Jim Eshelman]

Sun
Tau: 2
Gem: 7
Can: 5
Leo: 4
Vir: 6
Lib: 3
Sco: 7
Sag: 4
Cap: 8
Aqu: 2
Pis: 5
Ari: 4

Moon
Tau: 3
Gem: 6
Can: 10
Leo: 4
Vir: 8
Lib: 3
Sco: 4
Sag: 4
Cap: 5
Aqu: 5
Pis: 6
Ari: 1

Foreground [Classes 1 & 2]
Moo: 5 / 4
Sun: 4 / 5
Mer: 2 / 2
Ven: 4 / 5
Mar: 8 / 3
Jup: 2 / 4
Sat: 7 / 4
Ura: 5 / 3
Nep: 3 / 7
Plu: 1 / 8

Aspects [Classes 1: Hard/Soft]
Mo-Su: 3 / 3
Mo-Me: 6 / 2
Mo-Ve: 4 / 5
Mo-Ma: 11 / 0
Mo-Ju: 8 / 5
Mo-Sa: 4 / 3
Mo-Ur: 5 / 1
Mo-Ne: 5 / 1
Mo-Pl: 5 / 5
Su-Me: 7
Su-Ve: 5
Su-Ma: 5 / 4
Su-Ju: 5 / 4
Su-Sa: 6 / 3
Su-Ur: 4 / 1
Su-Ne: 2 / 1
Su-Pl: 7 / 2
Me-Ve: 4 / 3
Me-Ma: 8 / 3
Me-Ju: 1 / 4
Me-Sa: 4 / 1
Me-Ur: 6 / 3
Me-Ne: 2 / 8
Me-Pl: 5 / 2
Ve-Ma: 6 / 1
Ve-Ju: 5 / 2
Ve-Sa: 5 / 3
Ve-Ur: 5 / 5
Ve-Ne: 6 / 2
Ve-Pl: 4 / 7
Ma-Ju: 4 / 3
Ma-Sa: 3 / 4
Ma-Ur: 5 / 6
Ma-Ne: 7 / 3
Ma-Pl: 4 / 1
Ju-Sa: 7 / 3
Ju-Ur: 3 / 1
Ju-Ne: 5 / 3
Ju-Pl: 10 / 1
Sa-Ur: 6 / 6
Sa-Ne: 5 / 5
Sa-Pl: 7 / 6

[Jim Eshelman]

Interpreting the combined numbers, i.e., all examples age 80 or older.

Sun signs
Across the entire 80+ range, Capricorn is the most common Sun sign. It is followed by Scorpio (which was strong in 90+) and Gemini (which was strong in the 80s) - one giving extra strength, the other greater sense of youth. The lowest scores were Taurus and Aquarius (2), the former being lowest in 90+ and the latter in the 80s.

Spokes continued their slight edge. Capricorn kept Rims from being low. Negative signs continued to out-perform positive signs.

Moon signs
Cancer topped everything with Virgo close behind. Aries was the clear bottom. I remain suspicious of Moon signs having much to say about the question. (Spokes topped the others somewhat. Triplicities favored Water, with Fire quite low. I'm starting to think the Enigma signs are "slow burning" and the Imperial signs "fast burning.")

Sun + Moon signs
Capricorn and Gemini hold second place (13 each), topped by Cancer (15) and Virgo (14) - I'm not sure how to sort that out, though the actual signs involved match what we have seen (and may just be the consequences of the individual, more meaningful parts). The Cancer-Capricorn axis and Gemini-Virgo pair are interestingly strong. Taurus and Aries are the clear bottom at 5.

Angularities
For close (Class 1) angularities, Mars (8) and Saturn (7) top the list. Notice that Saturn was stronger in the 90+ group and Mars strong in both but proportionately stronger in the 80s. Pluto is least angular (1) with Mercury and Jupiter next (2).

Expanding angularity more general (incorporating Class 2), it changes just a bit. Mars and Saturn continue to top the list at 11 each, but several planets appear 9 or 10 times (Moon, Sun, Venus, Neptune). This probably is the infusion of entertainment celebrity focus and floods the top of the list, only Mars and Saturn really standing out on their own. Mercury appears least with a moderate 4 (and Jupiter at 5).

Aspects
Considering only hard aspects, Moon-Mars is the outstanding top with 11 occurrences (as it was top aspect in both the separate groups). This is an aspect of longevity. I think it important to note that not a single soft Moon-Mars appeared in any of these charts, though the highest number of hard aspects occurred.

Next common was Mercury-Mars at 8. This may single out the creative people used as examples or may show strong mental acuity later in life. An unusual 7 Sun-Mercury aspects are noteworthy for similar reasons.

The least common hard aspects were Mercury-Jupiter and Sun-Neptune.

Combining soft aspects with the hard aspects produces a very different picture. I'm somewhat suspicious of it, i.e., thinking attention should focus on the hard aspects. Nonetheless, it is interesting to check. Moon-Jupiter is most common (and Jupiter factors have been the least common throughout). Mercury-Mars and Mars-Uranus come next (probably mental quickness of both plus frisky vitality). The clear bottom of the list (nothing close to it) is Sun-Neptune, which is revealing.

[Jim Eshelman]

Finally, I want to subtract the 80s list from the 90+ list to see if significant discrepancies appear that I've missed. Though there are slightly fewer in the 90+, the lists are similar so I won't do any outright weighting - I'll just subtract straight out and see what I get. These numbers are 90+ list minus 80s list totals.

Sun
Tau: -2
Gem: -1
Can: -1
Leo: 2
Vir: -2
Lib: -1
Sco: 1
Sag: -2
Cap: 0
Aqu: 2
Pis: 1
Ari: 2

Moon
Tau: -1
Gem: -2
Can: -2
Leo: 0
Vir: 2
Lib: 1
Sco: 2
Sag: -2
Cap: 1
Aqu: 1
Pis: 0
Ari: -1

Foreground [Classes 1 vs 1 & 2]
Moo: -3 / -7
Sun: -4 / -7
Mer: 2 / 0
Ven: 0 / -3
Mar: 0 / 1
Jup: -2 / -4
Sat: 5 / 3
Ura: -3 / -4
Nep: -3 / -4
Plu: -1 / -5

Aspects [Classes 1 Hard]
Mo-Su: -3
Mo-Me: -2
Mo-Ve: -2
Mo-Ma: 1
Mo-Ju: 2
Mo-Sa: 2
Mo-Ur: 1
Mo-Ne: -1
Mo-Pl: -5
Su-Me: 1
Su-Ve: -3
Su-Ma: -3
Su-Ju: 1
Su-Sa: -2
Su-Ur: 0
Su-Ne: -2
Su-Pl: -1
Me-Ve: 0
Me-Ma: -2
Me-Ju: 1
Me-Sa: 0
Me-Ur: 0
Me-Ne: 0
Me-Pl: -3
Ve-Ma: -2
Ve-Ju: 1
Ve-Sa: -3
Ve-Ur: 1
Ve-Ne: -2
Ve-Pl: -2
Ma-Ju: 2
Ma-Sa: -1
Ma-Ur: -1
Ma-Ne: 3
Ma-Pl: -2

[Jim Eshelman]

There are not vast differences, but I'll take a minute to see what I can deduce, if anything.

Sun signs
No vast differences. in individual placements. In quadruplicities, Hubs are slightly stronger in the 90s and Spokes in the 80s.

Moon signs
The one difference is that Moon in Cancer is measurably stronger for people who continue (running strong) into their 80s than those who continue strong into their 90s. Hub Moons slightly distinguish the 90s group. Imperial signs (already a hair weak) are weaker in the 90s (perhaps burning out?).

Sun + Moon signs
The Taurus, Gemini, and Cancer range plus Sagittarius is stronger in the 80s group and the 90s group in the non-Taurus Hubs (Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius).

Angularity
For close angularities, there is a difference: Those who live strong into their 90s have clearly more angular Saturns and fewer angular Suns.

When angularities are widened to Class 2, there are wider swings but not necessarily more meaningful swings. Those who thrive into their 80s but not into their 90s have more foreground luminaries and Pluto (and, somewhat, Jupiter and Neptune). This sounds like a profile for celebrities per se, though.

Aspects
The soft aspect distinctions have not been strong in any of these, so I'll limit these remarks to Class 1 hard aspect comparisons.

The biggest difference is that Moon-Pluto aspects are much more common in the 80s group than the 90s group. As previously mentioned, I think this is a mix of factors: Moon-Pluto aspects are common for inflammatory diseases and other cathartic crises that may stop someone from reaching their 90s. OTOH I also suspect people in their 80s spend more time in existential contemplation.

The other differences and I'm pretty sure they aren't meaningful to this study.

[Jim Eshelman]

The study is too small for these to be firm conclusions. They are, in fact, the first conclusions I've bothered to formulate in my life concerning the issue of natal chart factors' relevance to longevity. They are all extracted from the observations above.

Usual caveats should be stated: Judging the length of someone's life is complicated by numerous factors including intervening life experiences and progresses in medicine and life extension. Many astrologers abide by the old AFA ethical standard that predicting death is unethical. Just as in non-astrological life, the prospects of a long life are partly a matter of a given person's potential for a long life, choices they make along the way, and intervening events such as accidents, diseases, or other interventions that could cut that life short prematurely so, at best, these are generalizations.

I do think, though, that they open a door to improving our ability to assess this topic.

One wonders, though, whether this is of practical use and not just entertainment. We die when we die. Even if these facts are all correct and meaningful, they only show broad trends that can be altered by predictive trends (transits, progressions, returns). I don't think predicting death is unethical (unless it is handled in an otherwise unethical fashion or used for otherwise unethical purposes), but I do wonder if it is valuable except in the short run (e.g., identifying the end of a terminal illness).

A published study by Donald Bradley using hundreds of examples against a matching control group showed 'Earth' sign Suns and Hub Moons as the longest lived, and Rim Moons as the shortest lived. Individual sign breakdowns and other factors were not published.

Conclusions from this study

• Natal astrological longevity factors are primarily the survival-furthering classic malefics, Saturn and Mars. The further one goes in life, the more important Mars and (especially) Saturn strength are to the endurance and persistence that characterize persevering in a meaningful, productive life.
• Charts studied for people productively living 100 years or more all had strong Saturn presence either by exact angularity, a Capricorn luminary, or a close hard luminary-Saturn aspect. (This seems to confirm the old adage that Saturn is hard on the young and a blessing to the old.)
• Capricorn Sun is the most common placement for all charts studied (people continuing productively past 80). For those living productively into their 90s, Scorpio matched Capricorn's frequency and Taurus Sun was the least common. For 80-somethings, Gemini and Virgo Suns tie Capricorn, likely showing persistent youthfulness (Gemini) and active, engaged use of the one's mind. (These signs stop being unusually common after 90.)
• Moon sign importance for longevity is questionable. Nonetheless, for all ages studied, there was a slight tendency for Rim Moons to be under-represented in those living longer lives (especially Aries and Libra Moons, which were least common; in contrast, Cancer and Capricorn Moons are not uncommon).
• Those living productively into their 90s had an excess of Virgo Moons. This may be a random result but was quite strong in this small sample.
• Saturn and Mars foreground (especially Saturn closely angular) were unusually common for those living productively into their 90s, with Sun least often foreground despite its usual manifestation as high vitality and unusually strong life force.
• For those living productively into their 80s, Mars was the most foreground planet. The Saturn and Sun effects did not show in the 80s group.
• No instances were found of Neptune or Pluto closely foreground in the 90+ group.
• Close Moon-Mars hard aspects were the most common natal aspects across the entire study, being most common for the 90+ group, those in their 80s, and the whole study. Interestingly, not a single Class 1 Moon-Mars soft aspect occurred.
• Mercury-Mars aspects were the second most common across all ages studied, probably indicating active, effective intellect continuing later in life. Sun-Mercury conjunctions were unusually common, signaling continued effective use of intelligence longer in life. Mars-Neptune aspects were also more common than usual for the longest-lived, including centenarians, but not unusually common for those below 90.
• Soft aspects had little to contribute to the profile. As a minor effect, when malefic angularities or luminary-sign rulerships were present, the second most common aspects were hard and soft Moon-Jupiter and Sun-Jupiter aspects (perhaps adding a little luck and good-fortune as an "extra").
• Sun-Neptune and Moon-Neptune aspects are the least common for the group that continued productively into their 90s (just as there were no close Neptune angularities). I am unclear whether this infrequency pertains to longevity or to the ability to continue productively and with full mental capacity in their advanced years. Sun-Neptune and Mercury-Jupiter were the least-common aspects for all ages studied.
• Moon-Pluto and Mars-Pluto aspects are similarly infrequent for the 90+ group, probably because they indicate more serious health crises (e.g., hospitalizations and immune system over- and under-performance). However, for those in their 80s, Moon-Pluto tied Moon-Mars (probably referring to lifestyle matters).

[Jim Eshelman]

Done for now.