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GAIA

Capítulo 4 de 10/5 min de lectura

Getting to know the Moon

Its phases, when to observe it and why the full Moon is not the best time.

Traducción aún no disponible: texto original

  1. Luna nuevadía 0
  2. Luna crecientedía 4
  3. Cuarto crecientedía 7
  4. Gibosa crecientedía 11
  5. Luna llenadía 15
  6. Gibosa menguantedía 18
  7. Cuarto menguantedía 22
  8. Luna menguantedía 26
El ciclo completo dura unos 29,5 días. Fases vistas desde el hemisferio norte.

The Moon takes about 29.5 days to complete its cycle of phases. It does not change shape: we simply see a different portion of its sunlit half.

  • Waxing crescent: visible in the evening, in the west after sunset.
  • First quarter: high at sunset, sets around midnight.
  • Full Moon: rises at sunset and stays up all night.
  • Last quarter: rises around midnight, visible in the morning.

The best time to look at it

Through binoculars the most spectacular Moon is not the full one but one near first or last quarter: along the terminator, the line between day and night, long shadows bring out craters and mountains.

The Moon and the deep sky

Full Moonlight brightens the whole sky and hides faint galaxies, nebulae and meteors. For those, pick nights close to the new Moon: GAIA's calendar lists them.