Yesterday we paid reverence to the Sun. Today we pay reverence to the Moon.
- As the Moon orbits planet Earth, different portions of its surface are lit up by the sun's rays, thereby creating the varying phases we see from Earth.
- It takes the Moon 29.5 days to go through all its phases from New Moon to New Moon.
- New Moon marks the beginning of the moon's cycle. In this phase, the moon is almost completely invisible from Earth. (bottom 6 o'clock in left photo).
- Waxing Crescent signifies the beginning of the moon's visibility from Earth. In this phase, the moon looks to be a slim, crescent-shaped sliver that's illuminated by the sun and becomes visible against the nighttime sky. This sliver of the moon grows in size over the next several days. (7 o'clock and 8 o'clock in in the above photo)
- First Quarter phase is when the right side of the moon (as viewed from the Northern Hemisphere) is visible. This phase occurs about a week after the New Moon. (9 o'clock in the above photo)
- Waxing Gibbous is where the illuminated portion of the moon is growing larger and is more than half-full. (10 o'clock and 11 o'clock in the above photo)
- Full Moon is when the entire face of the moon is illuminated by the sun. The Full Moon is a prominent phase in the lunar cycle. (12 o'clock in the above photo)
- Waning Gibbous phase occurs right after the Full Moon. In this phase the moon remains more than half-lit but slowly loses its brightness each night. (1 o'clock and 2 o'clock in the above photo)
- Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) is when the left side of the moon is illuminated in the Northern Hemisphere. This is when the moon has completed three-quarters of its orbit around the Earth since the last New Moon. (3 o'clock in the above photo)
- Waning Crescent is considered the final stage of the lunar cycle before transitioning back to the New Moon. The Waning Crescent is the mirror opposite of the Waxing Crescent, with the illuminated part shrinking towards the New Moon. (4 o'clock and 5 o'clock in the above photo)
Bless Me Father, but when I look up into the nighttime sky, all I do is ooh and aah at a full moon. I also can recognize what we call a sliver of the moon. That's it. The next full moon will occur on August 9th. My goal is to follow the moon for one month and identify its stages. Think it's about time I do that.
Why is the Moon important?
Migration. Until now, I hadn't paid attention that birds might rely on moonlight for their migration and nighttime navigation. I've often wondered why steady streams of birds gather to leave on one particular day. Do they have the ability to sense changes in the weather that helps them decide when it's a good time to depart?
Tides. The moon's gravitational pull on the Earth creates a force that tugs on our planet, and that includes the oceans. This pull isn't uniform across the Earth. The side of the Earth facing the moon experiences a stronger pull, causing the ocean waters to bulge outwards. A similar bulge forms on the side of the Earth farthest from the Moon. When an area passes through a bulge, it experiences a high tide. When it's between the bulges, it's low tide. To help us understand this, try to imagine forcing the ball-shaped Earth to look more like a football.
Tidal movements help stabilize the Earth's climate. Ocean currents are driven by the tides, which distribute warmer water around the globe and influence the global climate.
If there was no moon, the animals all over the world would be confused. Predators rely on both the darkness of night and a small amount of moonlight to effectively hunt. Without any light at night, prey would likely thrive because predators would have a harder time spotting them. Just like the tides, this could cause drastic changes in the ecosystem, and potentially lead to the extinction of certain predatory animals.
If there was no moon, the Earth's seasons could change. We experience the seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter because the Earth is tilted. The Earth's tilt is 23.5 degrees. It is the pull of the Moon's gravity on the Earth that holds our planet in place. Without the Moon stabilizing our tilt, it is possible that the Earth's tilt could vary wildly. It would move from no tilt (which means no seasons) to a large tilt (which means extreme weather and even ice ages.)
May this mere glimpse help us be thankful for the Moon that shines for all of us. After all, she is the Empress of the Night Sky.
"The moon does not fight.
It attacks no one.
It does not devour.
It is simply BEAUTIFUL."
"The moon reminds us that even in darkness,
there is light."
"The moon is a loyal companion.
It never leaves.
It's always there,
watching, steadfast,
knowing us in our light and dark moments,
changing forever
just as we do."
~Tahereh Mafi
"Don't worry if you're making waves
just by being yourself.
The moon does it all the time."
~Scott Stabile
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| "The moon was so beautiful that the ocean held up a mirror." ~Ani DiFranco |