Which phase is just before the Full Moon in the sequence?

Which phase is just before the Full Moon in the sequence?

• A. Waning Crescent
• B. Waxing Gibbous
• C. New Moon
• D. Third Quarter

Answer: (B)

The phase just before the Full Moon is the Waxing Gibbous. After the New Moon, the illuminated portion of the Moon grows larger through the Waxing Crescent, then First Quarter, and then Waxing Gibbous, until it becomes a Full Moon. “Waxing” means the lit area is increasing, and “Gibbous” means more than half of the Moon’s disk is lit. So Waxing Gibbous is the stage right before Full Moon. The other phases fit different parts of the cycle: Waning Crescent comes after the Full Moon, as illumination decreases toward a New Moon; the New Moon is when hardly any of the Moon is lit; and the Third Quarter is the half-lit stage on the opposite side that occurs after the Full Moon.

The phase just before the Full Moon is the Waxing Gibbous. After the New Moon, the illuminated portion of the Moon grows larger through the Waxing Crescent, then First Quarter, and then Waxing Gibbous, until it becomes a Full Moon. “Waxing” means the lit area is increasing, and “Gibbous” means more than half of the Moon’s disk is lit. So Waxing Gibbous is the stage right before Full Moon.

The other phases fit different parts of the cycle: Waning Crescent comes after the Full Moon, as illumination decreases toward a New Moon; the New Moon is when hardly any of the Moon is lit; and the Third Quarter is the half-lit stage on the opposite side that occurs after the Full Moon.