The moon undergoes eight primary phases in its roughly 29.5-day lunar cycle. Starting with the New Moon, when the moon is between Earth and the sun and is not visible, it progresses to the Waxing Crescent as a sliver of light appears. The First Quarter, or half-moon, shows half of the moon illuminated. Next, the Waxing Gibbous phase occurs as more than half is lit, leading to the Full Moon, when the entire face is illuminated. Following this, the moon wanes through the Waning Gibbous phase, then