In Western culture, the four principal lunar phases are new moon, first quarter, full moon, and third quarter (also known as last quarter). These are the instances when the Moon's apparent geocentric celestial longitude minus the Sun's apparent geocentric celestial longitude is 0°, 90°, 180° and 270°, respectively. read more
The eight phases of the moon are new moon, waxing crescent, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, third quarter and waning crescent. Many people believe that the phases of the moon are the direct cause of Earth's shadow when it falls on the moon. This is actually not the case. read more
Answer: The Moon orbits Earth at an average distance of 382,400 kilometers. The lunar month is the 29.53 days it takes to go from one new moon to the next. During the lunar month, the Moon goes through all its phases. You can see the phases drawn in the image below. read more