Timing and cycles
Last Quarter Moon
Direct answer
Last Quarter Moon is the phase after Full Moon when the Moon appears half illuminated and the cycle enters its closing adjustment point.
Last Quarter Moon is a waning checkpoint for release, correction, and integration.
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At a glance
- In astrology
- The Last Quarter Moon is a waning square between the Moon and Sun and is also called Third Quarter Moon.
- Found in
- Transits & Cycles
- Related
- Birth Chart, Zodiac, Transit
Last Quarter Moon is a waning checkpoint for release, correction, and integration.
The orbit map distinguishes physical bodies, calculated points, and symbolic cycles where possible.
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What sets Last Quarter Moon apart
At the last quarter the Moon stands 90 degrees behind the Sun, a quarter of the cycle before the next New Moon, and the half of her disc that was dark at the first quarter is now the lit half. It falls about 22 days after the New Moon, and she rises around midnight and is highest in the south near sunrise. Ptolemy makes the stretch before it, from Full Moon to this quarter, the dry one, and the stretch after it the cold one.
- Angle: 270 degrees from the Sun, or 90 behind it, a waning square
- Timing: about 22 days after the New Moon, three quarters through the cycle
- Disc: half lit, the left half as seen from the northern middle latitudes
- In the sky: rises around midnight, highest near sunrise, sets around midday
- Ptolemy, Tetrabiblos I.8: Full Moon to last quarter is dry, last quarter to the dark Moon is cold
- Other name: third quarter, as it is the third of the four quarter points
Often mistaken for something else: Last Quarter is the waning square, with the left half lit. The First Quarter has the right half lit and comes before the Full Moon.
A one-minute story
The Wandering Stars
How the moving planets were watched, named and found, and what a transit is.
The story behind Last Quarter Moon
The quarter Moons are among the four primary lunar phases recognized in astronomy and calendar practice.
The spiritual meaning of Last Quarter Moon
Spiritually, Last Quarter Moon asks what wisdom remains after the peak has passed.
Why Last Quarter Moon matters
Last Quarter Moon matters because the cycle is no longer about building. It asks what must be understood, forgiven, or removed.
How to read Last Quarter Moon
Last Quarter Moon timing speaks to review, closure, edits, accountability, and deciding what not to carry into the next cycle.
Last Quarter Moon in practice: an example
A Last Quarter Moon in the Ninth House may ask for a belief, plan, course, or travel idea to be revised.
Where readings of Last Quarter Moon go wrong
It is a mistake to start every major new effort under a Last Quarter Moon. It is better suited to correction and release.
Sources and editorial method
This entry summarizes the tradition in the Almanac's own words; where no source is listed, it is an editorial summary rather than a primary text, and symbolic readings are named as the tradition's, not as fact.
- Source
- The Great Almanac Dictionary
- Category
- Transits & Cycles
- Last updated
- 2026-09-26
Complete the lunar lesson
Last Quarter Moon in a book is one thing; Last Quarter Moon in your own birth chart is your life. The Oracle casts your real chart and tells you what it means for your love, your work, and your year ahead, in conversation. It opens with the 7-day Seeker trial.
Speak with the OracleThe Cosmic Codex reads a whole year of transits against your own chart, Last Quarter Moon included where it touches your love, your work, your timing. Open the Cosmic Codex
Related terms
More in Transits & Cycles
- Mars Retrograde
- Planetary Cycle Phase
- Prenatal Syzygy
- Second Pass
- Third Pass
- Uranus Retrograde
- Blood Moon
- Exact Transit
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Common questions
What is Last Quarter Moon?
Last Quarter Moon is the phase after Full Moon when the Moon appears half illuminated and the cycle enters its closing adjustment point.
Where does Last Quarter Moon come from?
The quarter Moons are among the four primary lunar phases recognized in astronomy and calendar practice.
What does Last Quarter Moon mean in astrology?
The Last Quarter Moon is a waning square between the Moon and Sun and is also called Third Quarter Moon.
What does Last Quarter Moon look like in a birth chart?
A Last Quarter Moon in the Ninth House may ask for a belief, plan, course, or travel idea to be revised.
What does Last Quarter Moon mean spiritually?
Spiritually, Last Quarter Moon asks what wisdom remains after the peak has passed.
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