Shortest Time Between Moon Phases in 2022
By Anne Buckle. Published 20-May-2022
The time between this month’s Full Moon and Third Quarter Moon will be the shortest period between two primary Moon phases this year.
This month, the Moon only takes 6 days, 14 hours, and 29 minutes to reach the Third Quarter. The Third Quarter Moon setting behind rock formations in Mount Sinai, Egypt.
©iStockphoto.com/Sarah Lage
6 days, 14 hours, and 29 minutes after Full Moon, the Moon reaches Third Quarter at 18:43 UTC on May 22.
The Moon in a Hurry
According to timeanddate’s calculations, this is the shortest time between two primary Moon phases this year.
Because primary Moon phases, like Full and Third Quarter Moon, happen at a specific moment in time, we can measure the time it takes between them. In this case, the Full Moon happened at 04:14 UTC on May 16, and the Third Quarter Moon will be at 18:43 UTC on May 22.
The Full Moon is the time when the Moon is 100% illuminated; the Third Quarter Moon is when the illumination reaches 50%.
Local Moon phase times & dates
3 Shortest Moon Phases 2022
| Time Period | Moon Phase | Length |
|---|---|---|
| May 16-22 | Full to Third Quarter | 6 days, 14 hours, 28 min, 57 sec |
| August 5-12 | First Quarter to Full | 6 days, 14 hours, 29 min, 12 sec |
| December 23-30 | New to First Quarter | 6 days, 15 hours, 3 min, 40 sec |
3 Longest Moon Phases 2022
| Time Period | Moon Phase | Length |
|---|---|---|
| January 9-17 | First Quarter to Full | 8 days, 5 hours, 37 min, 14 sec |
| December 8-16 | First Quarter to Full | 8 days, 4 hours, 47 min, 55 sec |
| April 30-May 9 | New to First Quarter | 8 days, 3 hours, 53 min, 16 sec |
Note: Moon phase dates in UTC.
The Speed of the Moon and Earth
“The Moon’s orbit around Earth is not a perfect circle. It’s an ellipse, which is like a squashed circle,” explains Graham Jones, timeanddate’s astrophysicist.
“This means the distance between the Earth and the Moon varies, and this affects how quickly the Moon travels. When it’s closer, it travels more quickly. When it’s further away, it travels more slowly. The same goes for the Earth in its orbit around the Sun.”
“The length of time between lunar phases depends on the speed of the Moon and the speed of the Earth. It can vary by more than a day and a half.”
See Where the Moon Is Right Now
NEW! Video Explaining Moon Phases
We show you how Moon phases work in our new video:
How do Moon phases work? We explain what happens and show how the Moon’s shape and moonrise times change over a lunar month.
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