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A guide to Earth’s only natural satellite

The Moon, up close.

No dark side, no cheese and only 30 seconds of fuel to spare. Every fact checked against NASA, plus your birthday Moon from NASA’s own phase tables, a lander to fly and an eraser called Useless who has packed a bucket and spade.

See your birthday Moon Fly the lander

The full face of the Moon: grey highlands, dark smooth patches and bright craters with rays
The near side of the Moon, in a mosaic of pictures from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.Photo: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University, Public domain, Commons
384,400 kmaverage distance from Earth NASA Science: Moon facts
29.53days from one new Moon to the next NASA NSSDC: Moon fact sheet
1/6of Earth’s gravity NASA Science: Moon facts
Your birthday Moon

What did the Moon look like the day you were born?

Put in any date from 1901 to 2100. We look it up in NASA’s own table of Moon phases, draw the Moon for that day and find the next time a full Moon lands on it. Nothing leaves your browser.

Or try: · ·

Pick a date to see its Moon

The Moon right now

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Next full Moon (your time)
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Next new Moon (your time)
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How it works: phase dates and times are from NASA’s phase tables for 1901 to 2100, by Fred Espenak NASA GSFC: Phases of the Moon, 2001 to 2100 (F. Espenak), in Universal Time. The table lists the four main phases; between them we work out the shape and “% lit” ourselves, so those are estimates, not official figures. The month between new Moons varies from 29.26 to 29.80 days NASA GSFC: Phases of the Moon, 2001 to 2100 (F. Espenak). Weight × 0.165, the Moon’s surface gravity compared with Earth’s NASA NSSDC: Moon fact sheet. The drawing shows the Moon as seen from the Northern Hemisphere; from the Southern Hemisphere it looks upside down NASA Science: Top Moon questions.

The short version

The Moon is Earth’s only natural satellite. NASA Science: Moon facts The Moon isn’t a planet. It’s a natural satellite: a space object that orbits around something else. NASA Science: Top Moon questions

Put a green pea next to a US nickel (a 5-cent coin) and you have a good idea of the size of the Moon compared to Earth. NASA Science: Moon facts With a radius of about 1,740 km, the Moon is less than a third of the width of Earth. NASA Science: Moon facts

The Moon doesn’t make its own light. Moonlight is sunlight reflected off the Moon’s surface. NASA Science: Top Moon questions The Moon spins once on its axis in the same time it takes to go once around Earth, so the same side always faces us. NASA Science: Moon facts

The Moon probably formed after a Mars-sized body crashed into the young Earth. Debris from both came together to make the Moon. NASA Science: Moon facts The Moon is the only place beyond Earth that people have visited, so far. NASA Science: Moon facts · checked 26 Oct 2026

Earth, half lit and blue, rising above the grey edge of the Moon against black space
“Earthrise”, taken by Bill Anders from lunar orbit on Apollo 8, 24 December 1968.Photo: NASA/Bill Anders, Public domain, Commons

Explore the Moon

Tile images are credited on their pages and on the credits page.

Mission control is open

Things to play

All games →

The whole Earth, a blue and white globe with a brown landmass, against black space
Earth through the Orion spacecraft’s window during Artemis II, April 2026. Photo by NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman.Photo: Reid Wiseman/NASA, Public domain, Commons
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Free sample

Free Moon printables sample, 6 pages. Pick your paper size:

A4 340 KBUS Letter 340 KB

Moon printables

Fact-checked PDFs in A4 and US Letter, sold as instant downloads from the ReallyByte store.

  • Moon Phases Pack

    A phase wheel to make, a Moon diary, all eight phases to cut and order, and a tides and eclipses page, with answer keys

  • Moon vs Earth Worksheets

    Size, distance, gravity, days and temperatures compared, with Moon-maths, labelling and answer keys

  • Moon Missions Cards

    Twelve double-sided cards, from Luna 2 in 1959 to Artemis II in 2026, plus a timeline game

  • Moon Activity & Colouring Pack

    Colouring scenes, a lander maze, word search and puzzles for ages 4 to 9

  • Moon Facts Poster Set

    Six fact-checked posters, from the phases to the 30 seconds of fuel left on Apollo 11

  • Moon Quiz & Word Puzzles Pack

    A crossword, code breaker, fill-the-gap facts, number match, myth busters and a 16-question quiz, with answer keys

Best value

The Complete Moon Printables Bundle

All six packs plus a guide, A4 and US Letter, in one download.