2021-01-16 - Orange, VA - Circle

Looked like the full moon, but was not.

At 20:30 I stepped out onto my deck, which is on the back of my house, and looked to the south-southwest, where I spotted what looked like the full moon behind a thin layer of clouds, bright but somewhat diffused. It was fairly low in the sky, about 7 to 10 degrees above the horizon. I recall cheerfully greeting the moon with a ‘hello, moon’, a habit I have when it is particularly bright, which is why I took note of it later, when it disappeared. It was there for at least the next 5 minutes, then I went inside. On that night, the actual moon was in waxing crescent, with only 20% illumination, which I saw when I stepped back outside an hour later. No trace of the ‘full moon’ was visible, only the proper crescent phase. The position of the large, white glowing disk was far lower in the sky than the orbit of the moon is currently following, as well. It made no sound, had no color except for the pale glow the moon sheds, and did not flicker or move while I obser! ved it.