But, as the Moon moves around the Earth, the face pointing towards us gradually becomes hidden from the Sun until we can hardly see it at all – this is a New Moon. Once the face of the Moon is fully turned towards the Sun, it’s a Full Moon, and we see it all. When the Moon appears to be getting bigger, it’s ‘ waxing’ and when it looks like it’s getting smaller, it’s ‘ waning’. The illumination is constantly changing and can vary up to 10 a day. This is the percentage of the Moon illuminated by the Sun. The Waxing Gibbous on June 10 has an illumination of 79.

It takes the Moon 27.3 days to make a complete orbit around the Earth, but because the Earth is moving around the sun at the same time, it takes the moon 29.5 days to go through its eight different ‘phases’ – a lunar month.ĭid you know we have a FREE downloadable Phases of the Moon primary resource? Great for teachers, homeschoolers and parents alike! Visit the June 2022 Moon Phases Calendar to see all the daily moon phase for this month. The Moon is Earth’s only natural satellite (a celestial body that orbits a planet). In actual fact, it’s just our view of it that’s altering… So, as the Moon orbits the Earth, the Sun lights up different parts of it, making it seem as if the Moon is changing shape. The Moon doesn’t emit (give off) light itself, the ‘ moonlight’ we see is actually the Sun’s light reflected off the lunar surface. Lunar calendar, Moon Phases Sun Oct 9, FULL MOON at 20:54, Aries Ari Mon Oct 10 Waning Gibbous Moon Waning Gibbous, Aries. Well, here’s the answer – it doesn’t ‘change shape’ at all! Let’s take a look at the phases of the Moon… Have you ever looked up at the sky and noticed how the Moon changes shape each night? Ever wondered why… And how?

Moon phases ten