Moon Phases

Moon & Lunar Science

The crescent moon looks like a thin, gently curved sliver of bright lunar terrain against darker sky, with the illuminated side always pointing roughly toward the Sun. It shows...

Astronomy

Sunset with the moon pairs two reliable celestial events into a quiet, repeatable experience you can plan around the world. Unlike one-off eclipses or rare conjunctions, this pa...

Astronomy

In early November the evening sky often shows a waxing crescent or quarter moon in the western sky after sunset, while by late November the brighter gibbous and full moon rise e...

Astronomy

We see the Moon phases because the Moon orbits Earth while Earth orbits the Sun, and only the side of the Moon lit by the Sun is bright enough for us to see from our viewpoint....

space

Lunar phases describe the portion of the Moon illuminated by the Sun as observed from Earth, cycling approximately every 29.5 days. This cycle shapes tides, governs astronomical...

space-astronomy

A supermoon occurs when a full moon coincides with or is very near lunar perigee, the point in the Moon’s elliptical orbit closest to Earth. This proximity makes the Moon appe...

space

The new moon in June 2025 happens when the Moon aligns with the Sun, rendering it mostly invisible from Earth. During this phase, the Moon rises and sets close to the Sun, so th...

Astronomy

The Strawberry Moon is the traditional name for the full Moon that falls closest to the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. It usually appears in June, though in some ye...

space-astronomy

The Moon today goes through the same phases that have guided timekeeping, navigation, and ceremony for millennia, and knowing how to read those phases helps you plan evening sky...

symbolism

The Moon’s eight principal phases mark a repeating celestial cycle that cultures, rituals, and symbolic traditions have mapped onto human experience. Broadly, the waxing phase...