If an observer on Earth views the Moon to be in a full phase, in what phase would an observer on the Moon view Earth to have?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Consider the Earth–Moon geometry when the Moon is observed as full from Earth. 
Option 1: 'new' – This aligns with the idea that when the Moon is opposite the Sun in our sky (a full Moon), the Sun illuminates the far side of the Moon and leaves the near side fully lit for us on Earth. Consequently, from the Moon, Earth would appear dark because the Sun would be lighting the side of Earth facing away from the Moon, making Earth appear in a new-like phase. 
Option 2: 'waxing crescent' – A waxing crescent Earth would imply a small sliver of the Earth’s dayside visible from the Moon, which does not match the extreme positions involved in a full Moon configuration; the geometry doesn’t support a crescent Earth when the Moon is full as seen from Earth. 
Option 3: 'full' – If Earth looked full from the Moon, that would require Earth to be opposite the Sun from the Moon’s perspective in a way that is inconsistent with the Moon being full from Earth; the lighting geometry contradicts the observed full Moon phase on Earth. 
Option 4: 'waning gibbous' – This implies a larger illuminated portion of Earth from the Moon but in the opposite progression, which again does not fit the full Moon geometry observed from Earth. 
In summary, the most consistent interpretation of the Sun–Earth–Moon alignment for a full Moon from Earth is that the Earth would appear in a near-new phase from the Moon, since the Sun would illuminate Earth’s side facing away from the Moon. Hence, the reasoning above supports the 'new' option as the likely Earth phase seen from the Moon in that situation.

If an observer on Earth views the Moon to be in a full phase, in what phase would an observer on the Moon view Earth to have?Single choice

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