THOSE in the Fraser Coast who look to the celestial heavens on Friday are in for a treat - a Black moon held by a thin crescent will be on the rise from sunset.

While the natural phenomenon is part of the monthly lunar calendar, amateur astronomer Dave Reneke said the waxing crescent was full of spiritual meaning.

"Ancient people had a term for this and its part of the ageless folk-lore that surrounds our closest companion in the sky," he said.

"They called it, 'the old Moon in the new Moon's arms.'"

As the moon completes a full rotation around the Earth once every 28 days, the waxing crescent is observable between the New Moon and First Quarter - a period of about seven days.

During this time, fisherman should watch for higher than average tides and a bigger catch, Mr Reneke said.

"And it's always fun to try to spot the extremely thin crescent Moon. Begin sweeping the Western sky with binoculars just after sunset," he said.

"You'll be surprised how difficult it is to see the razor thin Moon against a low contrast sky but when you do the sight is magnificent.

"The Moon will be in its crescent phase where the dark or 'black' part is illuminated slightly by Earthshine, reflected sunlit from the Earth's seas and oceans bouncing off the Moon.

Moon phases

 New moon

 Waxing crescent

 First quarter

 Waxing gibbous

 Full moon

 Waning gibbous

 Third quarter

 Waning crescent