page_title: Phases of the Moon
hierarchical_section_title: Phases of the Moon
caption_attribution_description: English: Diagram of Moon Phases
context_page_description: The phases of the Moon are the different ways the Moon looks from Earth over about a month.
  As the Moon orbits around the Earth, the half of the Moon that faces the Sun will be lit up. The different shapes of the lit portion of the Moon that can be seen from Earth are known as phases of the Moon. Each phase repeats itself every 29.5 days.
  The same half of the Moon always faces the Earth, because of tidal locking. So the phases will always occur over the same half of the Moon's surface.
  A phase is an angle of the moon to the earth so it appears differently every day.
context_section_description: The phases of the Moon are the different ways the Moon looks from Earth over about a month.
  As the Moon orbits around the Earth, the half of the Moon that faces the Sun will be lit up. The different shapes of the lit portion of the Moon that can be seen from Earth are known as phases of the Moon. Each phase repeats itself every 29.5 days.
  The same half of the Moon always faces the Earth, because of tidal locking. So the phases will always occur over the same half of the Moon's surface.
  A phase is an angle of the moon to the earth so it appears differently every day.
caption: Diagram of the Moon's phases: The Earth is at the center of the diagram and the Moon is shown orbiting (dashed circle). The Sun lights half of the Moon and Earth from the right-side. The phase of the Moon is shown next to the corresponding position of the Moon in its orbit around Earth. The phase is as seen in the Northern hemisphere of the Earth.