What Is the Lunar Cycle? From New Moon to Waning Crescent, Here’s How Moon’s Appearance Changes Over the 8 Lunar Phases

In our solar system, the sun is the only object that shines with its own light. Its light always shines on both the Earth and the moon. It lights up half of our planets and reflects off the moon to create moonlight. Depending on the moon’s position, sometimes we see the whole face of the moon glowing brightly; some times it is just a small crescent, and at times it seems to disappear completely. But why does this happen? Well, as they say, it’s just a phase! These changing appearances of the moon are called the moon phases, and this cycle repeats every month, which is about 29.5 days. Google Doodle Brings Back ‘Rise of the Half Moon’ To Celebrate November’s Final Half Moon With Fun Interactive Card Game (See Pic).

The eight lunar phases in order are the new moon, waxing crescent, first quarter, waxing gibbous, full moon, waning gibbous, last quarter, and waning crescent. To mark the final half-moon quarter of November 2024, Google launched a new interactive doodle called the ‘Rise of the Half Moon.’ The doodle features a half moon and invites players to engage in a fun card game. In the game, the players have to keep the moon shining bright by pairing cards featuring the moon’s phases on a board to score points. Let’s dive right in and learn more about the lunar cycle and the eight moon phases.

New Moon

During this phase, the moon appears completely dark or invisible. This happens as the moon is between the Earth and the sun, so the side of the moon that is lit by the sun is facing away from us. It’s the beginning of the lunar cycle.

Waxing Crescent

During this phase a small sliver of the moon starts to appear. This is when the moon moves slightly around Earth and we start seeing the sunlight that is reflected off it. The light slowly grows every day.

First Quarter

During the first quarter, half the moon is visible. This phase takes place when the moon is a quarter of the way through its orbit around Earth. At this time, it appears like a perfect half-circle in the sky.

Waxing Gibbous

During this phase, more than half of the moon becomes visible, but it is not yet visible fully. The moon continues its orbit, and more sunlight gets reflected. The moon keeps getting brighter every night.

Full Moon

This is when the entire face of the moon is fully visible. It happens when the Earth is between the sun and the moon. It allows all of the moon’s surface to reflect sunlight. This is the brightest phase of the moon.

Waning Gibbous

After the full moon, we start to see less of the moon. The light starts to reduce as the moon moves away from the Earth. During this phase, it appears as if the moon is shrinking in size every night.

Last Quarter

Again, during this phase, half of the moon is visible, but this time it is on the opposite side of the first quarter. The moon is three-quarters of the way through its orbit, and its shape looks like a backwards half-circle.

Waning Crescent

During its waning crescent, only a small crescent of the moon is left before it disappears. At this time, the moon is almost back to the new moon phase, completing its cycle, and it gradually fades away. Google Doodle Celebrates October's Final Half Moon with Interactive Card Game on Lunar Phases (See Pic).

The changing phases of the moon are very fascinating and remind us of the many wonders of the night sky. These cycles, though they occur every month, still continue to captivate people all across the globe till date.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 21, 2024 03:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).