During this period, 50% of the Moon’s disc will be illuminated (left side in the northern hemisphere, and the right in the southern), which is the opposite of how it would appear during a First Quarter. This is followed by a Third Quarter (or last quarter) Moon. This is the exact reverse of a Waxing Gibbous Moon, when the Moon is increasing in brightness from a New Moon to a Full Moon. when it’s half illuminated from our perspective – we say that it’s a Waning Gibbous Moon. When the Moon is no longer full, but it hasn’t reached a quarter moon – i.e. In other words, when the Moon is waning, it will have less and less illumination every night until it’s a New Moon. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State UniversityWhen the Moon starts to decrease its angle again, going from 180-degrees back down to 0-degrees, astronomers say that it’s a waning moon. Synthetic view of the waxing Moon as viewed from Earth on 17:00:00 UTC. During the former period, the Moon brightens and its angle relative to the Sun and Earth increases. One of these lasts 28 days, and encompasses what are known as “waxing” and “waning” Moons. ![]() The period in which a Moon will go from a New Moon to a Full Moon and back again is known as “Lunar Month”. And then, when the Moon and Sun are on opposite sides of the Earth, they’re at 180-degrees – which corresponds to a Full Moon. A week after a New Moon, and the Moon and Sun are separated by 90-degrees, which effects what we will see. We call this a New Moon.Īfter this, the phase of the Moon changes, because the angle between the Moon and the Sun is increasing from our perspective. At this point, the side of the Moon facing the Sun is fully illuminated, and the side facing the Earth is enshrouded in darkness. When the Sun, the Moon and Earth are perfectly lined up, the angle between the Sun and the Moon is 0-degrees. But from our perspective here on Earth, which part of the Moon is illuminated – and the amount to which it is illuminated – changes over time. For starters, since the Moon orbits Earth, and Earth orbits the Sun, the Moon is always half illuminated by the latter. But what exactly does this mean?-day Lunar Cycle:įirst, we need to consider the orbital parameters of the Earth’s only satellite. ![]() It all comes down to the Lunar Cycle, the two key parts of this cycle involve the “waxing and waning” of the Moon. With the birth of astronomy as a scientific discipline, how the Moon appears in the night sky (and sometimes during the day) has also gone long way towards helping us to understand how our Solar System works. This has played a major role in shaping the mythological and astrological traditions of every known culture. ![]() Throughout recorded and pre-recorded history, they have paid close attention to its phases and accorded them particular significance. Human beings have been observing the Moon for as long as they have walked the Earth.
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