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Half of the Moon you cannot see because it faces away from Earth. Half of the side you could see is in darkness at "half Moon". That makes 3/4 of the Moon invisible and 1/4 visible. Hence "a quarter Moon" is visible.

Another viewpoint:

No, that's not really the answer. This is the answer:

Let's start with "New Moon". Later, at "Full Moon", the Moon is halfway through its cycle of phases.

Halfway between these two phases we see a half Moon. That's called the "first quarter" phase, because the Moon is a quarter of the way through its phases.

So, that's why we see the half Moon at a "quarter" phase.

It does cause confusion.

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Jo Kub

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3y ago

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Why is the phase in which half the moon is visible called a quarter moon?

Half of the Moon you cannot see because it faces away from Earth. Half of the side you could see is in darkness at "half Moon". That makes 3/4 of the Moon invisible and 1/4 visible. Hence "a quarter Moon" is visible. Another viewpoint: No, that's not really the answer. This is the answer: Let's start with "New Moon". Later, at "Full Moon", the Moon is halfway through its cycle of phases. Halfway between these two phases we see a half Moon. That's called the "first quarter" phase, because the Moon is a quarter of the way through its phases. So, that's why we see the half Moon at a "quarter" phase. It does cause confusion.


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