Introduction

The Moon is the closest object to Earth in space.  A "moon" is any natural space object that orbits a planet. The Moon orbits, or circles on a fixed path around the Earth, just like the Earth orbits the Sun.

The Moon does not produce its own light. We see the Moon because the Sun shines upon it just like it shines on Earth to give us day. At different times, different parts of the Moon are lit up by the Sun. Sometimes it appears as a banana shaped crescent, sometimes we only see half and sometimes it is full and bright.

Moonlight occurs when the Moon shines light onto Earth. The Moon reflects light from the Sun onto Earth just like a mirror reflects the light from a lamp.

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G A L L E R Y Take a look at how the moon travels around the Earth. [enlarge]

M O R E Learn more about the moon at the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum.