Phases

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Phases Of the Moon
BY Bridget Crawford and Emily Baker
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TABLE OF CONTEXT

• New Moon Full Moon
• Waxing Crescent Waning Gibbous
• First Quarter 3rd Quarter
• Waxing Gibbous Waning Crescent

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Phases of the moon
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New Moon
The new moon is the phase of the moon when the
moon is not visible from Earth, because the side
of the moon that is facing us is not being lit by
the sun.
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Waxing Crescent
A waxing crescent moon-sometimescalled a "young
moon"is always seen in the west after sunset. At
this moon phase, the Earth, moon and sun are
located nearly on a line in space. If they were
more pre
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First Quarter Moon
First quarter moon comes a week after new moon.
The moon in its orbit around Earth is at right
angles to a line between the Earth and sun. A
first quarter moon is called "first quarter"
because it is one quarter of the way around in
its orbit of Earth, as measured from one new moon
to the next. Also, although some people call this
a "half moon," and although it really does appear
half-lit to us, it's good to recall that the
illuminated portion of a first quarter moon truly
is just a quarter. On the night of first quarter
moon, we see half the moon's day side, or a true
quarter of the moon.
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Waxing Gibbous
The waxing gibbous Moon is very nearly full and
illuminated generally from the right. This phase
of the Moon is seen to rise sometime in the
afternoon when few people are looking at the sky.
This is why it usually goes unnoticed until it
gets dark at sunset. By that time the gibbous
Moon is well above the southeastern horizon. The
Moon is in this phase for nearly a week between
first quarter and full. Just a day or so before
Full Moon the waxing gibbous Moon appears nearly
full and might be mistaken for a full Moon. The
Moon in this phase sets just shortly before
sunrise.
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Full Moon
The full moon is the phase of the moon that
occurs when the Moon lies on the opposite side of
Earth from the Sun. The moon as seen from the
surface of the earth is fully illuminated by the
sun at this time, presenting a "full" round disc
to viewers on earth. As always, only half the
total surface of the moon is illuminated.
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Waning Gibbous
The waning gibbous Moon is just past full and
illuminated generally from the left. This phase
of the Moon is seen to rise a little while after
sunset. The gibbous Moon rides across the sky for
most of the night and is still above the western
horizon at sunrise. The Moon is in this phase for
nearly a week between full and third quarter. For
a few days or so after Full Moon the waning
gibbous Moon appears nearly full and might be
mistaken for a full Moon. The Moon in this phase
sets just shortly after sunrise and is generally
seen by casual observers early in the morning.
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3rd Quarter Moon
The Third Quarter Moon is missed by most casual
observers. You will not see the Moon in this
phase anytime before midnight. In this phase, the
Moon rises at midnight and sets at noon. Once the
Sun does rise, the half illuminated Moon should
be rather easily spotted in the southern part of
the daytime sky for observers in the northern
hemisphere. Unfortunately, most people do not
think to look for the Moon in the morning sky, or
do not look on the correct day of the month.
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Waning Crescent Moon
    The waning crescent Moon is a thin sliver of
a thing which is seen to rise just a few hours
before sunrise. You will not see the Moon in this
phase anytime before midnight. In this phase, the
Moon leads the Sun across the sky by a little bit
all through the day. Once the Sun does rise, it
is just about impossible to see such a faint
thing as the waning crescent Moon in a daylit
sky.
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