Although half of the moon is always illuminated, usually only a portion of the illuminated side is visible from Earth. The diagram below presents the relative positions of Earth, the sun, and the moon. The positions of the moon are labeled 1-8. Which of the moons in the figure are in a crescent phase? (1 point) Responses 2 and 4 2 and 4 2 and 8 2 and 8 4 and 6 4 and 6 6 and 8 6 and 8 Skip to navigation

1 answer

To determine which positions of the moon are in a crescent phase, we first need to understand how the positions correspond to the visibility of the moon.

In a crescent phase, the moon is either waxing (growing from new to full) or waning (shrinking from full to new), which means that we can see a thin sliver of the illuminated portion.

Positions typically considered as crescent phases include:

  • Waxing Crescent: When the moon is positioned between the Earth and the sun, but just starting to go out of the new moon phase.
  • Waning Crescent: After the last quarter, when the moon is moving back towards the new moon phase.

Without seeing the actual diagram, we can make educated guesses based on typical lunar phases:

  • If positions 2 and 8 show the moon in a thin sliver of light (either slightly illuminated from the right or slightly from the left), they would be considered crescent.
  • If positions 4 and 6 show more than a crescent (like first quarter or gibbous), they would not qualify.

From your answer choices:

  • 2 and 4 likely present more than a crescent view.
  • 2 and 8 suggest one crescent phase.
  • 4 and 6 would indicate more than crescent phases.
  • 6 and 8 again would not likely both be in crescent phases.

Given these considerations, the best guess for the positions in crescent phase is 2 and 8, assuming they depict the moon as a thin crescent from Earth’s viewpoint.