There are eight named Moon phases (shown in order of occurrence in the
diagram below). It takes approximately 30 days (one month) for the Moon to
go through a cycle of phases.
New Moon
Waxing Crescent
First Quarter
Waxing Gibbous
Full Moon
Waning Gibbous
Last Quarter
Waning Crescent
Did You Know...
...that the month, a commonly used time unit, is derived from the Moon's
period of revolution (one orbit) around the Earth? In Old English, the
word month was "moonth." In "B" grade westerns (cowboy & indian
movies), the indians would tell time by counting cycles of moon phases: an
event in the past occurred "many moons ago."
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