Cool Moon Facts by Whip

Real astronomy, with sources. Folklore & tradition.

Fact #090 Observing

The waning crescent is the phase almost nobody has seen, for the simple reason that it only comes out shortly before dawn.

It is the mirror image of the young evening crescent everyone knows, hanging in the east before sunrise with the whole dark disc glowing in earthshine, and it is arguably the better of the two, because the air near dawn is usually steadier. You get about three mornings before the Moon is lost in the Sun's glare entirely.

Source: NASA Moon observing (opens in a new tab) · checked Aug 2026

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