The Moon goes through eight phases each month, from new moon to full moon and back again. This cycle has guided calendars and storytellers for thousands of years. NEW MOON - The new moon is the primary phase of the lunar cycle, occurring when the Moon and the Sun share the same ecliptic longitude, the new moon don’t have illumination. WAXING CRESCENT - The waxing crescent is the second phase of the lunar cycle, the visible surface grows from 0.1% to 49.9% illuminated. FIRST QUARTER The first quarter is the third phase of the lunar cycle, exactly half of the Moon illuminated by direct sunlight, while the other half is in the darkness WAXING GIBBOUS - The waning gibbous is the fourth phase of the lunar cycle, the visible surface grows from 50.1% to 99.9% illuminated. FULL MOON - The full moon is the fifth phase of the lunar cycle, occurring when the Moon is positioned on the opposite side of Earth from the Sun, the entire Earth-facing side of the Moon is fully lit by direct sun light. WANING GIBBOUS - The waning gibbous is the sixth phase of the lunar cycle, the visible sunlit decreases from 99.9% to 50.1% illumination. THIRD QUARTER - The third quarter is the seventh of the lunar cycle, Exactly half of the lunar disk is lit by direct sunlight, while the other half is in the darkness. WANING CRESCENT - The waning crescent is the eight and final phase of lunar cycle, the visible sunlit decreases from 49.9% to 0.1% illumination. 258 words on the text and more 11 on this line.