What Kinds Of Moons Are There

What Kinds Of Moons Are There

There would be no way to make calendars or keep track of the time or date without the Moon on Earth.

We wouldn't have as strong (or any) tides without the Moon, which is crucial to our survival.

There wouldn't be a way to make calendars to keep track of the passage of time or eclipses. The various Moon kinds help us keep track of time.

What Kinds Of Moons Are There

What Kinds Of MoonsAre There

Did you know that a lunar cycle has eight different types of moon.

All of us have heard the terms Blue Moon, Full Moon and perhaps even Blood Moon but what do they really mean.

 

The several varieties of the Moon that we frequently employ are listed below.

How do moon phases work?

In the western world, the lunar cycle is divided into eight phases.

This indicates that a cycle, called a lunar month, contains eight distinct moons.

Although the cycle only lasts for about 29.5 days, which is less than a full calendar month, it served as an aid in the creation of the current calendar.

The cycle describes the path taken by the Moon as it moves from being a New Moon to a Full Moon and back again so that the cycle might repeat.

Therefore, why not look up tonight to see what phase of the cycle we are in?

The eight distinct phases are described here.

Fresh moon.

The New Moon, which is hidden from our view, marks the start of the cycle.

This is so that we can see the shadow thrown on the side of the Moon that is directly in line with Earth and the Sun at this point in the cycle.

On this side, it cannot get direct sunlight, thus it doesn't appear to be lit up to us.

The cycle's first day is today.

Crescent Wax.

The Waxing Crescent is the following stage. It is expanding or getting bigger if it is waxing.

A little crescent can be seen forming during this phase as the Moon starts to move into a position where the sun can begin to illuminate a portion of its surface.

Up until it is about 49 percent lighted, it is still the Waxing Crescent moon.

Initial Quarter.

The Waxing Crescent is followed by the First Quarter.

The Moon appears to be a semicircle to us because we can see only about 50% of it illuminated.

Additionally, the Moon will have made one full rotation of the Earth at this time.

Gibbous waxing.

Following the First Quarter Moon is the Waxing Gibbous phase, which occurs when the Moon is illuminated by 51 percent to 99 percent of the sky.

When the Moon is in this phase, it appears to be partially lighted and then nearly fully illuminated.

A full moon.

When the moon's orbit takes it to the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun, it is then full.

As a result, the Moon's surface receives direct sunlight and is fully visible to us in the night sky.

The Full Moon hangs around for the 14th and 15th day of the cycle before transitioning into the following phase.

Gibbous waning.

In essence, the Waxing Gibbous Moon is the opposite of the Waning Gibbous Moon.

What Kinds Of Moons Are There

The Moon is visible as it transitions from Full Moon to a Quarter Moon.

At this point, we see a decline in illumination from 99 to 51 percent.

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