Learn more by clicking the Google or Facebook button below. Population Demographics for Tonasket, Washington in 2016 and 2017. Other Counties and Cities in Washington.
Sidereal Period versus Synodic Period. 1  Measuring the motion of the Moon around the Earth relative to the distant stars leads us to what is called the sidereal period. 2  Measuring the motion of the Moon around the Earth relative to the Sun leads us to what is called the synodic (pronounced si-nod-ik) period.
The Moon's sidereal orbital period (the sidereal month) is ~27.3 days; this is the time interval that the Moon takes to orbit 360Â° around the Earth relative to the fixed stars. The period of the lunar phases (the synodic month), e.g. the full moon to full moon period, is longer at ~29.5 days.