We’re almost at the end of the Moon’s current lunar cycle, with only the tiniest sliver surface still visible. That crescent will to shrink nothing over the next few nights before the Moon reaches its New Moon phase.
What is today’s Moon phase?
As of Tuesday, Aug. 11, NASA’s Daily Moon Guide tracker tells us the Moon phase is in Waning Crescent phase, with 3% of its surface visible.
The Moon is not illuminated enough to be able to spot anything on its surface tonight.
When is the next Full Moon?
The next Full Moon will take place on August 28.
What are Moon phases?
The Moon doesn’t look the same from Earth every night. As it travels around our planet, it moves through a lunar cycle that takes roughly 29.5 days to complete, according to NASA. The changing positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon affect how much of the Moon’s sunlit side we can see, creating the different phases. Over the course of the cycle, the Moon progresses from a narrow crescent to a half Moon and eventually a Full Moon, before starting the sequence over again.
The eight phases are:
Mashable Light Speed
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.