First Quarter
- Rise
- 2:08 PM
- Set
- —
Moon Phases August 2025 in Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz, California, United States
Daily moon phases, illumination, moonrise and moonset for Santa Cruz, in local time (America/Los_Angeles). Next full moon: Sturgeon Moon on Saturday, August 9.
Santa Cruz · Friday, August 1, 2025 Today
First Quarter
- Illumination
- 52.6%
- Moon age
- 8 days
- Distance
- 404,162 km
- Moonrise
- 2:08 PM
- Moonset
- —
- Highest
- 7:14 PM
First Quarter at 5:41 AM. Next: Full Moon on Sat, Aug 9 at 12:55 AM. Sturgeon Moon in 8 days.
At first quarter the Moon has completed a quarter of its orbit, and exactly half of the visible disc is lit: the right half in the northern hemisphere, the left in the southern.
Click any day in the calendar or pick a date above to see its details here.
August 2025 calendar
Waxing Gibbous
62%
- Rise
- 3:09 PM
- Set
- 12:13 AM
Waxing Gibbous
71%
- Rise
- 4:10 PM
- Set
- 12:46 AM
Waxing Gibbous
79%
- Rise
- 5:09 PM
- Set
- 1:27 AM
Waxing Gibbous
87%
- Rise
- 6:04 PM
- Set
- 2:15 AM
Waxing Gibbous
93%
- Rise
- 6:52 PM
- Set
- 3:12 AM
Waxing Gibbous
97%
- Rise
- 7:34 PM
- Set
- 4:16 AM
Waxing Gibbous
100%
- Rise
- 8:09 PM
- Set
- 5:24 AM
Sturgeon Moon
- Rise
- 8:39 PM
- Set
- 6:34 AM
Waning Gibbous
97%
- Rise
- 9:07 PM
- Set
- 7:43 AM
Waning Gibbous
93%
- Rise
- 9:33 PM
- Set
- 8:52 AM
Waning Gibbous
86%
- Rise
- 9:59 PM
- Set
- 10:01 AM
Waning Gibbous
77%
- Rise
- 10:27 PM
- Set
- 11:12 AM
Waning Gibbous
66%
- Rise
- 10:58 PM
- Set
- 12:24 PM
Last Quarter
- Rise
- 11:36 PM
- Set
- 1:37 PM
Waning Crescent
44%
- Rise
- —
- Set
- 2:51 PM
Waning Crescent
32%
- Rise
- 12:21 AM
- Set
- 4:02 PM
Waning Crescent
22%
- Rise
- 1:16 AM
- Set
- 5:06 PM
Waning Crescent
14%
- Rise
- 2:19 AM
- Set
- 6:00 PM
Waning Crescent
7%
- Rise
- 3:28 AM
- Set
- 6:43 PM
Waning Crescent
3%
- Rise
- 4:39 AM
- Set
- 7:19 PM
New Moon
- Rise
- 5:48 AM
- Set
- 7:48 PM
Waxing Crescent
0%
- Rise
- 6:54 AM
- Set
- 8:13 PM
Waxing Crescent
3%
- Rise
- 7:57 AM
- Set
- 8:36 PM
Waxing Crescent
7%
- Rise
- 8:57 AM
- Set
- 8:59 PM
Waxing Crescent
12%
- Rise
- 9:57 AM
- Set
- 9:21 PM
Waxing Crescent
19%
- Rise
- 10:56 AM
- Set
- 9:45 PM
Waxing Crescent
27%
- Rise
- 11:56 AM
- Set
- 10:12 PM
Waxing Crescent
36%
- Rise
- 12:57 PM
- Set
- 10:43 PM
First Quarter
- Rise
- 1:58 PM
- Set
- 11:21 PM
Waxing Gibbous
55%
- Rise
- 2:57 PM
- Set
- —
Times are local to Santa Cruz (America/Los_Angeles). A dash means the moon does not rise or set on that date.
Moon phases in August 2025
| Phase | Local date and time | UTC |
|---|---|---|
| First Quarter | Fri, Aug 1 at 5:41 AM | Aug 1, 12:41 |
| Full Moon · Sturgeon Moon | Sat, Aug 9 at 12:55 AM | Aug 9, 07:55 |
| Last Quarter | Fri, Aug 15 at 10:12 PM | Aug 16, 05:12 |
| New Moon | Fri, Aug 22 at 11:06 PM | Aug 23, 06:06 |
| First Quarter | Sat, Aug 30 at 11:25 PM | Aug 31, 06:25 |
About the First Quarter
At first quarter the Moon has completed a quarter of its orbit, and exactly half of the visible disc is lit: the right half in the northern hemisphere, the left in the southern. It rises around midday, is highest at sunset and sets around midnight, which makes it the most convenient phase for evening observing.
Along the terminator, the line between light and dark, the low Sun casts long shadows that make craters and mountains stand out sharply in binoculars.
Lore and folklore
Half moons stood for balance and decision in many traditions: half light, half dark. Farmers' almanacs treated the first quarter as a strong growing time, good for planting crops that bear seed inside the fruit, such as beans, peppers and tomatoes.
Weather lore held that a sharp, clear half moon foretold fine weather, while a blurred one meant rain.
Trivia
- The name is about the orbit, not the appearance: a quarter of the way around, half of the face lit.
- The straight-looking terminator is a great circle seen edge-on.
- At first quarter the Moon is about 90 degrees east of the Sun, which is why it is high overhead as the Sun goes down.
- The Apollo landing sites are easiest to study near the terminator, when shadows reveal the terrain.
Select any day in the calendar to read about its phase.
This month's full moon: the Sturgeon Moon
The giant sturgeon of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain were most easily caught in August.
The Green Corn Moon and Grain Moon reflect the ripening harvest. The Red Moon name comes from the reddish tint the moon takes on rising through summer haze.
Lore
The huge sturgeon of the Great Lakes were easiest to catch in August, and the moon took their name. The Grain Moon and Green Corn Moon mark the start of harvest, and the Red Moon describes the rising August moon seen through summer haze.
Trivia
- The Perseid meteor shower peaks around August 12, so the Sturgeon Moon's phase decides how good the show is.
- Lake sturgeon can live more than a century and grow over two metres long.
- Perigee full moons often cluster in late summer, so the Sturgeon Moon is frequently a supermoon.
Gardening by the Moon in August 2025
- Aug 1 · Leafy crops: Sow leafy crops and above-ground annuals whose seeds form outside the fruit: lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, celery, herbs. Transplant seedlings. Mow to encourage growth.
- Aug 2 to Aug 8 · Fruiting crops: Sow above-ground crops whose seeds form inside the fruit: beans, peas, tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers, melons. Graft, repot and sow lawns.
- Aug 9 to Aug 15 · Root crops: Plant root crops and anything that overwinters: carrots, beets, potatoes, onions, garlic, bulbs, perennials, trees and shrubs. Prune to slow growth.
- Aug 16 to Aug 22 · Rest and tend: Rest days for the soil: weed, cultivate, turn compost, harvest crops for storage, prune to discourage regrowth, prepare beds. Avoid sowing.
- Aug 23 to Aug 30 · Leafy crops: Sow leafy crops and above-ground annuals whose seeds form outside the fruit: lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, celery, herbs. Transplant seedlings. Mow to encourage growth.
- Aug 31 · Fruiting crops: Sow above-ground crops whose seeds form inside the fruit: beans, peas, tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers, melons. Graft, repot and sow lawns.
Full planting calendar for August › · How gardening by the moon works
How to read this moon calendar
Each day shows the Moon as it looks from Santa Cruz at midday local time, with the illuminated percentage, moonrise and moonset. Days with a principal phase show the exact local time the phase occurs. Because the Moon moves about 50 minutes later each day, roughly once a month there is a date with no moonrise or no moonset at all.
The eight phases of the Moon
New Moon
The Moon sits between Earth and the Sun. Its lit side faces away from us, so it is invisible in the night sky. A new lunar month begins.
Waxing Crescent
A thin sliver grows each evening after sunset. Look low in the west shortly after dusk.
First Quarter
Half the disc is lit. The Moon rises around midday and sets around midnight, so it is high in the sky at sunset.
Waxing Gibbous
More than half lit and growing. It rises in the afternoon and shines most of the night.
Full Moon
The whole face is lit. It rises at sunset and sets at sunrise. Each full moon carries a traditional name.
Waning Gibbous
The lit portion shrinks. It rises after sunset and is still up in the morning sky.
Last Quarter
Half lit again, on the opposite side. It rises around midnight and is best seen in the early morning.
Waning Crescent
A thinning sliver before dawn in the east, fading toward the next new moon.