Moon Basics
This is the source of the Moon’s light
What is the Sun?
This phase is not visible from Earth.
What is the new moon?
This word describes when we see more and more of the Moon.
What is waxing?
This word means “to move around another object.”
What is revolve?
This phase occurs when the Moon is between Earth and the Sun.
What is the new moon?
The Moon appears to change shape because of this.
What is different amounts of sunlight reflecting off the Moon?
This phase appears as a full circle in the sky.
What is the full moon?
This word describes when we see less and less of the Moon.
What is waning?
About this many Earth days make up one Moon day.
What are 27.3 Earth days?
This phase comes directly before the full moon.
What is the waxing gibbous?
This is the imaginary line the Moon rotates around.
What is an axis?
This phase occurs when Earth is between the Moon and the Sun.
What is the full moon?
This phase comes after the full moon.
What is the waning gibbous?
This is approximately how long it takes the Moon to complete one lunar cycle.
What is 28 days?
This phase occurs when the Moon is at a right angle relative to Earth and the Sun during waxing.
What is the first quarter?
This is the name for deep pits found on the Moon’s surface.
What are craters?
This phase is also called a half moon and occurs after the waxing crescent.
What is the first quarter?
This phase occurs between the new moon and the first quarter.
What is the waxing crescent?
The Moon revolves around this object.
What is Earth?
During this phase, more than half of the Moon is illuminated, but it is not yet full.
What is the waxing gibbous?
This is why we always see the same side of the Moon from Earth.
What is because the Moon’s rotation and revolution take the same amount of time?
This phase is the mirror image of the waxing crescent.
What is the waning crescent?
This phase occurs between the last quarter and the new moon.
What is the waning crescent?
At any time, this fraction of the Moon is illuminated by the Sun.
What is one-half?
The Moon does not produce its own light, but still appears bright in the night sky because of this process.
What is reflecting sunlight?