Science definitions

Moon phases

Moon phases represent the eight distinct, recurring shapes of the illuminated portion of the Moon as seen from Earth over a ~29.5-day lunar cycle

Moon Rotation

its spinning on its own axis, a movement that takes roughly 27.3 days to complete

Moon Revolution

approximately 27.3-day elliptical orbit around the Earth

Lunar cycle

the roughly 29.5-day process where the Moon orbits Earth, changing from invisible (new moon) to fully illuminated (full moon) and back again due to shifting sunlight angles

Moons Orbit

the stable, elliptical, and slightly tilted path that Earth's only natural satellite follows as it revolves counterclockwise around the planet, averaging roughly 239,000 miles away

Solar Eclipse

occurs when the Moon passes directly between the Earth and the Sun, casting a shadow on Earth and fully or partially blocking the Sun's light

Lunar Eclipse

occurs when Earth passes directly between the Sun and the Moon, casting its shadow across the lunar surface

Earth’s Atmosphere

Made up of Nitrogen, Oxygen, and Carbon Dioxide

Umbra

the fully shaded inner region of a shadow cast by an opaque object, especially the area on the earth or moon experiencing the total phase of an eclipse

Penumbra

the partially shaded outer region of the shadow cast by an opaque object.

Waxing

growth, energy building, and momentum, moving from a crescent to a Gibbous shape

Waning

The phase between a full moon and a new moon where the visible, illuminated portion of the moon appears to decrease, or fade, each night

Gibbous

the phase of the moon in which its illuminated part is greater than a semicircle and less than a circle.

Crescent

a curved shape tapering to points at both ends, resembling the moon in its first or last quarters

New Moon

Not able to see the moon

Full Moon

When you can see all of the moon

First Quarter Moon

When only half of the Moon is light up

Third Quarter Moon

When the other half of the Moon is light up

Regolith

a layer of loose, unconsolidated rock, dust, and soil that covers solid bedrock on Earth, the Moon, Mars, and other celestial bodies

Crater

a large, bowl-shaped cavity in the ground or on the surface of a planet or the moon, typically one caused by an explosion or the impact of a meteorite or other celestial body.

Maria

a large, level basalt plain on the surface of the moon, appearing dark by contrast with highland areas.

Meteoroid

a small body moving in the solar system that would become a meteor if it entered the earth's atmosphere