From lighting up our skies to maintaining a geological record of our solar system’s history, Earth’s closest celestial neighbor plays a pivotal role in the studies of our planet and our solar system.?
The Moon is about 27% the size of Earth.
We always see the same side of the Moon.
The Moon has a solid, rocky surface.
There's no rain or wind, but there is weather.
24 humans and more than 100 robots visited.
Earth's Moon is the brightest and largest object in our night sky. The Moon makes Earth a more livable planet by moderating our home planet's wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate. It also causes tides, creating a rhythm that has guided humans for thousands of years.
The Moon was likely formed after a Mars-sized body collided with Earth several billion years ago.
Earth's only natural satellite is simply called "the Moon" because people didn't know other moons existed until Galileo Galilei discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610. In Latin, the Moon was called Luna, which is the main adjective for all things Moon-related: lunar.
This visualization shows the Moon's phase at hourly intervals throughout 2024, as viewed from the Northern Hemisphere.
Why can I see the Moon during the day? And other frequently asked questions about our Moon.
When the full moon is a little bit closer to us than usual, it appears especially large and bright in the sky.
What does “weather” mean on a world with practically no atmosphere? Explore extreme lunar surface conditions here.
There’s water on the Moon. Follow the thread of discoveries that led up to the confirmation of its presence in 2020.
Several theories vie for dominance but most agree on one thing ? Earth's Moon was born from destruction.
As distant as the Moon may seem, its gravitational pull on Earth plays a huge role in the formation of tides.
The Moon's far side gets as much sunlight as its near side.
Like Earth, the Moon has a day side and a night side, which change as the Moon rotates. The Sun always illuminates half of the Moon while the other half remains dark. NASA’s LRO mission has used its seven science instruments to map the entire lunar surface, including the Moon's near and far sides, down to a scale of one meter.
NASA’s interactive map for observing the Moon each day of the year.
Begin a month of lunar observations, starting with the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024!
On Sept 14, 2024, celebrate lunar observation, science, and exploration.
Good Night, Moon
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Facts About Earth
Mars
Saturn
Uranus