Lunation is the average time for one lunar cycle or the moon’s synodic period. As the Moon orbits the Earth, while the Earth orbits the sun, the Moon exhibits different lunar phases. The amount of light reflected to the sun is relative to the position of the Sun, Earth and Moon.

Texts and descriptions are fine and dandy, but to see the Moon for what it is is another thing altogether. Enjoy these pictures of the Earth’s Moon.  

The heavenly body that brightens evenings isn’t the only moon there is. At the same time, the Earth is not the only planet with a celestial body orbiting around it. A moon is a natural satellite, and its main task is to orbit a planet, or other forms larger than itself. The moon we see isn’t unique, as there are 240 identified moons in our solar system alone, 163 of them orbit planets like the Moon orbits the Earth.

The Last quarter moon is basically the precise point of the Moon parading the Sun on the final arc of the lunar process. At this point the moon looks half-lit or illuminated. The moon takes on the shape of a pie sliced in half. The Last quarter moon rises at around the time of midnight, and comes to its peak during dawn. It sets at noontime. A Last quarter moon reveals itself three weeks after the new moon occurs. The [...]

Why the Moon has different phases and shapes The cyclical phases of the Moon are actually different angulated views of the Moon created by the relative positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon. At any one point of time, the Moon is half-lit by the Sun (of course, except during lunar eclipses when the Moon is directly behind the Earth with respect to the Sun and is completely shadowed by the Earth). However, as the Sun, Earth, and Moon periodically [...]

The Moon is Earth’s lone natural satellite. The Moon is the fifth largest satellite in our Solar System. The Moon is a little more than one-fourth the size of Earth. The Moon’s diameter is 2160 miles (3476 km) The Moon’s total surface area is 14,658,000 sq. mi (37,932,000 sq. km). The Moon rotates at ten miles per hour. Average distance between the Earth and the Moon is about 239,000 miles. Actual distance varies from 221,457 to 252,712 miles. The Moon’s [...]