The Moon is currently in its waning phase, meaning the illuminated portion we can see from Earth is gradually getting smaller. As it moves through the Waning Crescent stage, only a small sliver remains visible before the Moon reaches its New Moon phase.
What is today's Moon phase?
As of Wednesday, Nov. 3, NASA's Daily Moon Guide tracker tells us the Moon is in the Waning Crescent phase, with 25% of its surface visible.
Tonight, without the use of visual aids you should be able to spot the Aristarchus Plateau and that's all. With binoculars or a telescope, you'll be able to see this and the Kepler Crater.
When is the next Full Moon?
The next Full Moon will take place on November 24.
What are Moon phases?
It takes the Moon around 29.5 days to pass through a complete lunar cycle. As it travels around Earth, the angle at which sunlight reaches its surface changes what we can see from here, producing the different phases, from the New Moon through to the Full Moon and back again. The cycle then starts over, as explained by NASA.
The eight phases are:
New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).
Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).
First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.
Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it's not quite full yet.
Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.
Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)
Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.
Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.
