First
Quarter ♌ Leo
Moon phase for
Image credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio.
First Quarter 51% illuminated
First Quarter is the lunar phase on . Seen from Earth, illuminated fraction of the Moon surface is 51% and growing larger. The 7 days young Moon is in ♌ Leo.
* The exact date and time of this First Quarter phase is on 21 April 2048 at 10:02 UTC.
Moon phases for next 7 days
Wednesday Wed
Thursday Thu
Friday Fri
Saturday Sat
Sunday Sun
Monday Mon
Tuesday Tue
Moon phase and lunation details
Moonrise and moonset
Moon rises at noon and sets at midnight. It is visible high in the southern sky in early evening.
Moon is entering ♌ Leo
Moon is passing first ∠3° of ♌ Leo tropical zodiac sector.
Apparent angular diameter ∠1810"
Lunar disc appears visually 5.3% narrower than solar disc. Moon and Sun apparent angular diameters are ∠1810" and ∠1909".
Pink Moon after 6 days
Next Full Moon is the Pink Moon of April 2048 after 6 days on 28 April 2048 at 11:13.
Upcoming main Moon phases
- Full Moon in Scorpio ♏ on 28 April 2048 at 11:13
- Last Quarter in Aquarius ♒ on 5 May 2048 at 02:22
- New Moon in Taurus ♉ on 12 May 2048 at 20:58
- First Quarter in Virgo ♍ on 21 May 2048 at 00:16
Neap tide
There is low ocean tide on this date. Sun and Moon gravitational forces are not aligned, but meet at big angle, so their combined tidal force is weak.
Lunation 597 / 1550
The Moon is 7 days young. Earth's natural satellite is moving through the first part of current synodic month. This is lunation 597 of Meeus index or 1550 from Brown series.
Synodic month length 29.65 days
Length of current 597 lunation is 29 days, 15 hours and 38 minutes. It is 14 minutes shorter than next lunation 598 length.
Lunation length longer than mean
Length of current synodic month is 2 hours and 54 minutes longer than the mean length of synodic month, but it is still 4 hours and 9 minutes shorter, compared to 21st century longest.
Lunar orbit position on
True anomaly ∠135.6°
This New Moon true anomaly is ∠135.6°. At beginning of next synodic month true anomaly will be ∠163°. The length of upcoming synodic months will keep increasing since the true anomaly gets closer to the value of New Moon at point of apogee (∠180°).
Moon after apogee
4 days after point of apogee on 17 April 2048 at 07:22 in ♊ Gemini. The lunar orbit is getting closer, while the Moon is moving inward the Earth. It will keep this direction for the next 8 days, until it get to the point of next perigee on 29 April 2048 at 14:29 in ♏ Scorpio.
Distance to Moon 396 092 km
Moon is 396 092 km (246 120 mi) away from Earth on this date. Moon moves closer next 8 days until perigee, when Earth-Moon distance will reach 359 129 km (223 152 mi).
Moon after descending node
2 days after its descending node on 18 April 2048 at 16:39 in ♊ Gemini, the Moon is following the southern part of its orbit for the next 10 days, until it will cross the ecliptic from South to North in ascending node on 1 May 2048 at 18:46 in ♐ Sagittarius.
Draconic month
16 days after beginning of current draconic month in ♐ Sagittarius, the Moon is moving from the second to the final part of it.
Moon after northern standstill
3 days after previous North standstill on 17 April 2048 at 19:00 in ♊ Gemini, when Moon has reached northern declination of ∠23.861°. Next 9 days the lunar orbit moves southward to face South declination of ∠-23.803° in the next southern standstill on 1 May 2048 at 02:39 in ♐ Sagittarius.
Syzygy in 6 days
After 6 days on 28 April 2048 at 11:13 in ♏ Scorpio, the Moon will be in Full Moon geocentric opposition with the Sun and this alignment forms next Sun-Earth-Moon syzygy.