Moon Phase for Thursday Dec 23rd, 2021
The current moon phase for December 23rd, 2021 is the Waning Gibbous phase.
On this day, the moon is 18.77 days old and 87.27% illuminated with a tilt of -39.61°. The approximate distance from Earth to the moon is 398,794.28 km and the moon sign is Leo.
The Moon phase for December 23rd, 2021 is a Waning Gibbous phase. This is the first phase after the Full Moon where the illumination of the moon decreases each day until it reaches 50% (the Last Quarter phase).
The waning (shrinking) gibbous Moon will rise after sunset in the east, transit the meridian after midnight, before setting after sunrise in the west.
During this phase, the illumination of the moon will go down from 99.% to 50.1%. Technically, the phase starts as soon as the Full Moon has passed, but it can be difficult to calculate and differentiate the first stage of a Waning Gibbous Moon from a Full Moon when 98-99% of the Moon's surface is illuminated.
Fun fact: the word Gibbous was first used in the 14th century and comes from the latin word gibbosus which means humpbacked.
Moon Phase Details - Dec 23rd, 2021
Phase: Waning Gibbous
Moon age: 18.77 days
Moon illumination: 87.27%
Moon tilt: -39.61°
Moon angle: 0.5
Moon distance: 398,794.28 km
Moon sign: Leo
Moon Phase Calendar
Want to view the moon phase for a specific date? Use the handy calendar below to find any date you like and see what the current phase of the moon was for that date.
Upcoming Moon Phases
Below are the upcoming moon phase dates and times. For more information on each of the phases, you can click the link to find out more.