{"id":513,"date":"2010-01-30T10:07:43","date_gmt":"2010-01-29T21:07:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/science4all.blogtown.co.nz\/?p=513"},"modified":"2010-01-30T10:08:02","modified_gmt":"2010-01-29T21:08:02","slug":"the-moon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/science4all.blogtown.co.nz\/?p=513","title":{"rendered":"the Moon"},"content":{"rendered":"

\ufeffHave you ever wondered what causes the moon phases? <\/span><\/p>\n

We all know that its appearance changes over time.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"moon<\/p>\n

One important thing to notice is that exactly one half of the moon is\u00a0always<\/em> illuminated by the sun.<\/p>\n

New moon<\/span><\/strong> occurs when the moon is positioned\u00a0between<\/em> the earth and sun. The entire illuminated portion of the moon is on the back side of the moon, the half that we cannot see.<\/p>\n

At a\u00a0full moon<\/span><\/strong>, the earth, moon, and sun are in approximate alignment, just as the new moon, but the moon is on the opposite side of the earth, so the entire sunlit part of the moon is facing us. The shadowed portion is entirely hidden from view.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0first quarter<\/span><\/strong> and\u00a0third quarte<\/span>r<\/span><\/strong> moons (both often called a “half moon<\/strong>“), happen when the moon is at a 90 degree angle with respect to the earth and sun. So we are seeing exactly half of the moon illuminated and half in shadow.<\/p>\n

(REF: <\/span>http:\/\/www.moonconnection.com\/moon_phases.phtml<\/span><\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n

Important notes <\/span><\/h4>\n