Tonight, the Moon has vanished completely, meaning we’ve reached the New Moon phase of the lunar cycle. With no features visible, the sky is completely dark tonight, but it also happens to be an annular solar eclipse, which occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and Earth at its farthest point, too small to fully cover the Sun. The full eclipse will only be visible from Antartica, where parts of South Africa will be able to see a partial eclipse.
What is today’s Moon phase?
As of Tuesday, Feb. 17, the Moon phase is New Moon. According to NASA’s Daily Moon Guide, 0% of the Moon will be lit up tonight.
When is the next Full Moon?
The next Full Moon will be on March 3. The last Full Moon was on Feb. 1.
What are Moon phases?
According to NASA, the Moon takes around 29.5 days to complete one orbit around the Earth. Throughout that time, it goes through eight different phases of visibility. Even though we always see the same side of the Moon, the part that’s lit up changes as it moves along its orbit. The amount of sunlight reflecting off the surface is what changes the Moon’s appearance, and why sometimes it looks full, partly lit, or almost dark. 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).
Mashable Light Speed
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.
