Final answer:
The Moon's phase following the waxing gibbous is the full moon. When it rises at 3:00 p.m., it is likely in the waxing gibbous phase, and if it's highest in the sky at sunrise, it is likely at the third quarter phase.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student's question pertains to the sequence of the lunar phases and what comes next after a certain phase. When the Moon is in a waxing gibbous phase (position D), it indicates an increasingly illuminated hemisphere that we see from Earth. After the waxing gibbous, the Moon reaches a full moon phase (position E), where it and the Sun are located on the opposite sides of the Earth, and the Moon is fully illuminated as seen from Earth.
If the Moon rises at 3:00 p.m., it is likely in the waxing gibbous phase, heading toward a full moon, because it is visible in the afternoon and continues to rise later each day until the full moon. If the Moon is highest in the sky at sunrise, it is likely at the third quarter phase because it rises around midnight and is high in the sky by sunrise.