Your thinking style
Your mind likes systems, ideas and the future. You often think in terms of how something could be improved, reorganized or reinvented, and you are comfortable with unusual ideas. Fixed air gives your thinking firmness: once you have reasoned something through, you hold your position. You tend to look at a problem objectively and may see it from an angle nobody else considered.
How you communicate
You speak your own mind and value honesty over convention. Astrologers link Mercury in Aquarius with a talent for discussing ideas, causes and big questions, often with a detached, logical tone. You enjoy conversations with all kinds of people. Some people find your views surprising, and you may enjoy that a little.
How you learn
You learn best when you can explore freely and think for yourself. Science, technology, social questions and new or experimental subjects tend to interest you. You may question your teachers or the textbook, and you often learn by following your own curiosity. Group projects and networks of like-minded people can make learning more enjoyable for you.
At work
At work you bring originality, objectivity and a flair for systems. Astrologers link this placement with technology, science, research, social causes, community organizing and any role where new ideas are valued. You are often good at seeing how a process could be modernized. Rigid hierarchies and rules with no clear reason can frustrate you.
In relationships
In close relationships you want a meeting of minds. Friendship and good conversation often matter as much as romance to you, and you appreciate people who respect your independence. You are loyal to your friends and open-minded about how others live. A partner or friend who enjoys debating ideas, and who gives you space, suits you well.
Challenges
Detachment and stubbornness are the main hurdles. You may intellectualize feelings instead of acknowledging them, hold on to a view because you have already reasoned it out or rebel against an idea simply because it is popular. Others may sometimes experience you as distant. Letting emotion into the conversation, and staying open to changing your mind, gives your ideas more warmth.
Mercury in Aquarius and your Sun sign
Seen from Earth, Mercury never strays more than about 28 degrees from the Sun, so your Mercury sign is always your Sun sign or one of the two signs next to it. Between 1990 and 2035, Mercury passes through Aquarius 46 times. A typical passage lasts 19 days and the shortest 17 days. The longest, from Jan 5, 2015 to Mar 13, 2015, adds up to 67 days in Aquarius, because Mercury turned retrograde in or near the sign. Here is how the Sun signs of people born with Mercury in Aquarius are spread across that period: