What are the phases of the moon in order?

Answer 1

the phases of the moon in order is the new moon, then the waxing crescent moon, then the first quarter, then the waxing gibbous, then the full moon, then the waning gibbous, then the third quarter, then the waning crescent moon, and then the cycle starts all over again.

The moon is continuously cycling through eight distinct stages, commonly referred to as phases.

1. New Moon: In this phase, the Moon and the Sun rise and set at approximately the same time. When the Moon is in the same direction of the sun, the illuminated half is opposite from the side facing earth, therefore making the moon appear dark.

2. Waxing Cresent Moon: Here there is a sliver of the moon that is visible, and grows in size day by day. As the Moon rotates around the earth, more of the illuminated half is revealed. This process is called waxing.

3. Quarter Moon: A week after the new moon, the Moon has completed one-fourth of its rotation around the Earth, thus resulting in a visibility of a quarter of the Moon.

4. Waxing Gibbous Moon: Over the next week, more of the illuminated part of the moon is visible, making a "hump" sort of shape. (Gibbous means "humped!")

5. Full Moon: The Moon is halfway through its revolution two weeks after the New Moon phase. This means that the illuminated side of the Moon is now the one facing the Earth, allowing us to see an entire circle or disk.

6. Waning Gibbous Moon: After the Full Moon, what we can see of our Moon will decrease, so we call that waning. One week after it is full, it is referred to as a Waning Gibbous.

7. Last Quarter Moon: When only a quarter of the Moon is illuminated, it is called the last quarter.

8. Waning Crescent Moon: The Waning Crescent is visible during the fourth week when the Moon from our view appears to be only a thin sliver.