The revolution of the Moon around the Earth makes the Moon
appear as if it is changing shape in the sky. This is caused
by the different angles from which we see the bright part of
the Moon's surface. These are called "phases" of
the Moon. Of course, the Moon doesn't generate any light
itself; it just reflects the light of the Sun. The Moon
passes through four major shapes during a cycle that repeats
itself every 29.5 days. The phases always follow one another
in the same order.
New Moon
Waxing Crescent Moon
"Waxing" means growing and refers to
the size of the illuminated part of the moon that is
increasing.
First Quarter Moon
Waxing Gibbous Moon
Full Moon
The full moon occurs when the Moon lies on the opposite side of
Earth from the Sun. The moon as seen from the surface of the earth
is fully illuminated by the sun at this time, presenting a "full"
round disc to viewers on earth. As always, only half the total
surface of the moon is illuminated.
A full moon is the only time when a lunar eclipse is possible; at
that time the moon may move through the shadow cast by the earth.
However, because of the tilt of the moon's orbit around the earth
relative to the earth's orbit around the sun, the moon may pass
above or below the shadow, so a lunar eclipse does not occur at
every full moon. Full moons are generally a poor time to conduct
astronomical observations, since the bright reflected sunlight
from the moon overwhelms the dimmer light from stars.
Waning Gibbous Moon
"Waning" means
shrinking.
When the the Moon is said to be waning, we see a
little less of the Moon each day until it completely
disappears when the Moon is New.
Last Quarter Moon
Waning Crescent Moon
In the northern hemisphere, if the right side of the Moon is
dark, the light part is shrinking: the Moon is waning
(moving towards a new Moon). If the left side is dark, the
Moon is waxing (moving towards a full Moon). The acronym
mnemonic "DOC" represents this ("D" is the waxing Moon; "O"
the full moon; and "C" the waning moon). In the Southern
hemisphere, this is reversed, and the mnemonic is "COD".
Current Moon Phase
by the U.S. Naval Observatory
Blue Moons
When a month has two full moons, the second is often called a Blue
Moon.
Moon rise times
The New Moon always rises at sunrise.
The first quarter Moon rises at noon.
The Full Moon rises at sunset.
The last quarter Moon rises at midnight.
Moonrise takes place about 50 minutes later each day than the
day before.
Today's moon
phase screensaver With the StarMessage screensaver you can see the current moon
phase inside the stars of the night sky. In you are interested in
the current moon phase I recommend that you download the free
trial version of the program. You
can click here get it ?
Instantly view Full Moon Phases on your computer desktop with a great moon phase screensaver
Current Moon Phases Screensaver for Microsoft Windows
Write your messages with the stars of the night sky
View the current moon phase, stars, astronomy, space, and the universe screensavers at Screensaver-Download.com
Opinions about the StarMessage screensaver by other users like you
¤
I downloaded the trial and was so pleased with it I HAD to
register it. It's great to look at, its a good communication
tool. I leave greetings, messages there for other family
members. Its amazing and practical, worth every penny and A+
customer support.
Janice Brown
¤
This is by far the very
best screen saver one can find. Lost hard drives etc....I will
reinstall each and every time. Have had since 98 and wouldn't
change it for one second. Who can ask for more than the 'moon
and stars'?
Opinions
about theStarMessage screensaver by
other users like you
?
I downloaded the trial and was so pleased with it I HAD to
register it. It's great to look at, its a good communication
tool. I leave greetings, messages there for other family
members. Its amazing and practical, worth every penny and A+
customer support.
Janice Brown
?
This is by far the very
best screen saver one can find. Lost hard drives etc....I will
reinstall each and every time. Have had since 98 and wouldn't
change it for one second. Who can ask for more than the 'moon
and stars'?
