Monday, April 1 – Third Quarter Moon (at 03:15 GMT)
The moon will reach its third quarter phase on Monday, April 1 at 11:15 p.m. EDT or 8:15 p.m. PDT, which converts to 03:15 GMT on April 2. Third quarter moons rise around midnight in your local time zone, and then linger in the southern sky after sunrise. At third, or last, quarter the moon is illuminated on its western side, towards the pre-dawn sun. The week of dark, moonless evening skies that follow this phase will be ideal for observing deep sky targets in binoculars and telescopes, especially spring galaxies.