round trip time moon

Advertisement

How Long Does It Take to Get to the Moon?

• Share Content on Facebook
• Share Content on LinkedIn
• Share Content on Flipboard
• Share Content on Reddit
• Share Content via Email

Boldly glowing in the night sky, the moon has long been an object of fascination. It's not just a pretty face in our solar system; it's a natural satellite that affects the tides , animal sleep cycles (including humans !) and hormones .

But how long does it take to get to the moon ? Humans have long been inspired to look up and reach beyond the atmosphere of our own planet — that's part of why President John F. Kennedy set his sights on NASA's mission objective to travel to the moon in the 1960s — so it's only natural to wonder how long the journey takes.

So far, American astronauts have made nine journeys to the moon — six of which landed on the lunar surface. NASA, other governments, and other private companies are now planning crewed missions back to the moon, which will give us even more data about how long it takes to make the trip.

The Moon's Distance: Not Just a Straight Line

Travel time to the moon, a flashback to apollo 11, what lies ahead: new missions and new hopes.

The moon doesn't just lazily hover around Earth in a perfectly circular path. The moon's orbit is, in fact, elliptical .

This causes the moon to be sometimes closer to Earth (a point known as perigee) and sometimes further (known as apogee). This is why you might have heard the term " supermoon " thrown around.

Taking advantage of lunar orbit mechanics, astrophysicists can plan lunar missions to coincide with those times when the moon's elliptical orbit is at its closest point to Earth.

Based on past missions, we know that it usually takes about three days for a manned spacecraft to reach the moon when the average distance from Earth to the moon is 240,000 miles (386,243 kilometers) . This translates to a spacecraft's speed of about 3,333 mph (5,364 kph).

Yet, the duration isn't always set in stone. Some uncrewed missions, in a bid to be more fuel efficient, might move a lot slower. For instance, China's Chang'e missions took around four to five days .

But, want to hear something astonishing? The 1959 Luna 1, launched by a powerful rocket, made its journey to the moon in just 36 hours , traveling at a speed of about 6,500 mph (10,500 kph). However, it failed to land on the moon's surface.

The Luna 2, which launched only a few months later, not only succeeded in becoming the first spacecraft to land on the moon, but it also made the trip in 34 hours. And let's not forget the 2006 New Horizons, which breezed past the moon in a mere eight and a half hours en route to Pluto, reaching speeds of up to 36,373 mph (58,536 kph).

The Apollo missions, headed by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, were monumental in unraveling the mysteries of our lunar neighbor. The Apollo 11 mission showcases the wonders of orbital mechanics.

While it took Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and their team three days, three hours and 49 minutes to reach the moon and set foot on its surface, they returned to Earth in just two days, 22 hours and 56 minutes .

Why the time difference? As Armstrong and Aldrin were hopping around on the lunar surface, Earth and the moon grew slightly closer — an effect of that elliptical orbit we mentioned earlier. moon

With advancements in propulsion system and launch vehicle technologies, both governmental bodies and private enterprises are gearing up for future crewed missions to the moon. The European Space Agency, in collaboration with NASA's Orion spacecraft, aims to achieve newer milestones.

So, the next time you look up and see that silvery orb in the sky, just remember: A new chapter in our relationship with the moon is about to unfold with another crewed mission to its surface likely on the way.

This article was updated in conjunction with AI technology, then fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the average distance from earth to the moon, i've heard of a "distant retrograde orbit." what is it, how long does it take to travel to the moon.

Please copy/paste the following text to properly cite this HowStuffWorks.com article:

How long does it take to travel to the Moon?

Last Updated: November 23, 2022

Humans have always been fascinated by the prospect of visiting the Moon – our closest celestial neighbor, and the first stepping stone in the exploration of the solar system. Even with the use of modern technology and advanced propulsion systems, reaching the Moon remains a very difficult and very expensive endeavour.

So how long does it take to get to the Moon? The short answer is that it takes an average of 3 days to reach the Moon. 

Between 1969 and 1972, NASA sent 18 astronauts to the Moon as part of the Apollo space program . In addition, five nations and two political unions have successfully landed unmanned spacecraft on the lunar surface or placed them into lunar orbit.

The last Moon landing occurred almost 40 years ago! In fact, humans have not set foot on the lunar ground since December 14, 1972. That being said, NASA’s new “Artemis” mission is generating a great deal of public interest. The next Moon landing is scheduled for 2024!

So, what are the factors that can influence the duration of this incredible journey? Let’s dive in! Or should I say, let’s take off?

Cargo load is one of the many factors that can influence the time it takes to travel to the Moon.

Does the Moon's orbit affect the time it takes to get there?

We know that the Moon is located at an average distance of 238,855 miles from Earth. However, the trajectory of the Moon’s orbit around the Earth is elliptical, with one side closer to the Earth than the other and an average eccentricity of 0.0549.

Since its path is not perfectly circular, there is a moment when the Moon is as close as possible to the Earth (lunar perigee) at 221,500 miles, and another moment when it is as far away as possible (lunar apogee) at 252,700 miles.

While the distance between the Moon and Earth is an important factor to consider when planning a spacecraft’s trajectory, other considerations come into play regarding the duration of the flight to the Moon.

Related reading : How Far Away is The Moon From Earth Right Now?

The duration of a journey to the Moon varies according to the following factors:

• The chosen itinerary;
• The selected type of propulsion system ;
• The presence or the absence of crew members aboard the spacecraft;
• Whether the spacecraft is scheduled to land on the surface, orbit around the Moon, or just fly by the Moon while heading towards a more distant target.

For example, if the space probe “New Horizons” was travelling at its maximum speed of 36,400 mph while the Moon is at perigee (221,500 miles), the probe would reach the Moon in only 6 hours and 15 minutes! If the Moon was at apogee (252,700 miles), the space probe would take about 6 hours and 50 minutes to pass by the Moon.

How long does it take to fly a manned spacecraft to the moon?

The most popular lunar mission is undoubtedly Apollo 11, during which the astronauts Neil Amstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins travelled to the Moon for the first time. After blasting off from the Kennedy Space Center on July 16, 1969, the astronauts landed on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969, and the journey took 75 hours and 49 minutes. 

To date, the Apollo 8 mission still holds the record for the shortest travel time ever achieved by a spacecraft carrying astronauts on board (69 hours et 8 minutes). In total, NASA conducted 6 lunar landings during the Apollo program.

Although other countries have conducted orbital placements as well as landings of unmanned spacecraft, the United States remains to this day the only country to have successfully landed astronauts on the Lunar surface.

As you can see in the table below, the time taken to reach the Moon is different for each Apollo mission. There are several explanations for this:

• The purpose of some missions was only to orbit the Moon rather than land on it.
• NASA was constantly researching and testing for the best possible trajectory.
• Some missions involved transporting very heavy equipment, such as the lunar rover.

The Apollo 12 mission arrived on the Moon after a voyage that took three and a half days.

How long does it take to send an unmanned spacecraft to the moon?

Even for unmanned space probes, there is no such thing as a consistent travel time… It all depends on whether the spacecraft is just passing by the Moon, whether it is intended to be placed into orbit or to land on the surface. New Horizons holds the record for the shortest trip to the Moon: 8 hours and 35 minutes! 

The record for the longest journey to the Moon is held by SMART-1, a space probe engineered by the European Space Agency: it took a full year to reach the Moon! Although SMART-1 is the slowest spacecraft to ever reach the Moon, it remains the most fuel-efficient spacecraft in history.

How long did it take Artemis 1 to reach the Moon?

Artemis 1 was launched on November 16 2022, at 6:47 am GMT (1:47 EST). This flight was the first in a series of missions planned by NASA as part of its Artemis program, which aims to land the first woman and next man on the moon by 2024. The launch vehicle used for the mission was the SLS (Space Launch System), carrying the Orion spacecraft into space.

After a relatively smooth journey, Orion officially entered lunar orbit on November 21, at 7:57 am ET (12:57 UTC). In total, Artemis took 5 days, 1 hour, and 10 minutes to travel from Earth to the Moon. It is not the quickest flight we’ve seen, but the main goals were:

• Test the flight systems
• Test the new technology that was developed for the mission
• Provide data on how the SLS performed, as well as insights into the health of Orion’s systems and overall performance.
• Prepare for crewed missions starting next year.

Related Article: How Much of Space Have We Explored So Far?

In summary, the time it takes to reach the Moon is about 3 days on average for manned spacecraft. On the other hand, for unmanned spacecraft, the travel time can vary considerably depending on the mission objectives. They usually reach their destination much faster.

I eagerly look forward to the launch of the next lunar mission scheduled for 2024.  Mankind will return to the lunar surface for the first time in 40 years! And this time, a woman will be part of the crew! How amazing!

Is it possible that 40 years of technological progress will significantly reduce the time it takes to reach the Moon? Perhaps the new private space companies, such as SpaceX, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin, will beat all previous records? We’ll find out the answer in a few years…!

Written by Tom Urbain

I’ve been fascinated by space and astronomy from a very young age. When I’m not watching space-themed documentaries, movies or TV series, I spend most of my free time in my backyard admiring the planets and galaxies with my telescope.

Explore more space travel stories 🚀

This moon-related story is part of our collection of astronomy articles . If this piece sparked your interest, you’re sure to enjoy the fascinating insights offered in our subsequent articles.

The Duration of a Voyage to Mars: A Detailed Analysis

How long does it take to reach the Uranus?

Countdown to Saturn: The Travel Time Involved

Traveling to Jupiter: How Long is the Journey?

How Long Does it Take to Get to The Sun?

Universe Today

Space and astronomy news

How Long Does It Take To Get To The Moon?

Back in 2008 , Richard Branson outlined his vision for Virgin Galactic’s future. Once tourists are taken into Earth orbit, it seems possible that space hotels could be developed for longer stop-overs in space. He then went on to mention that short “sight-seeing” tours to the Moon could be started from these ultimate hotels. If we are to make travel to the Moon routine enough to send tourists there, the trip would need to be as short as possible.

So how long is the commute from the Earth to the Moon anyway? Human beings and machines have made that trip on several occasions. And while some took a very long time, others were astonishingly fast. Let’s review the various missions and methods, and see which offers the most efficient and least time-consuming means of transit.

Many missions have arrived in lunar orbit and landed on the lunar surface, but the means of getting there are widely varying. Whether a mission uses a rocket to blast its way there, or a subtle ion engine to slowly edge its payload closer, we have many options open to us when we travel to the Moon in the future. To this end, I’ll give a quick rundown from slowest to fastest flights to Earth’s natural satellite 380,000 km away.

Unmanned Missions:

The slowest mission to fly to the Moon was actually one of the most advanced technologies to be sent into space. The ESA’s  SMART-1 lunar probe was launched on September 27th, 2003 and used a revolutionary ion engine to propel it to the Moon. SMART-1 slowly spiraled out from the Earth to arrive at its destination one year, one month and two weeks later on November 11th, 2004.

SMART-1 may have been slow, but it was by far the most fuel efficient. The craft used only 82 kg of xenon propellant for the entire mission (ending with a lunar impact in 2006). The SMART-1 mission is an oddity as it is by far the longest mission to the Moon, the rest of the missions took a matter of days to reach lunar orbit.

China’s Chang’e-1 mission was launched from Xichang Satellite Launch Center on October 24th 2007 but sat in Earth orbit til October 31st when it began its transit to the Moon and arrived in lunar orbit on November 5th. The mission therefore took five days to cover the distance, using its rocket boosters. This was followed up by the Chang’e 2 orbiter, which launched on Oct 1st 2010 and arrived in lunar orbit within 4 days and 16 hours .

More recently, Chang’e 3 probe and lander launched on Dec. 1st, 2013 at 17:30 UTC and arrived in Lunar orbit on December 6th at 9:53 UTC. It was therefore the fastest of the Chang’e missions, taking 4 days, 12 hours, and 23 minutes to reach the Moon before deplyoing its lander to the lunar surface.

However, it was the first-even unmanned mission to the Moon that was the fastest. This mission was known as the Soviet Luna 1 probe, which completed a flyby of the Moon in 1959. This basic, but pioneering probe was launched on January 2nd and flew past the Moon by a few thousand kilometers on January 4th. It only took 36 hours to make the trip, therefore traveling an average speed of 10,500 km/hr.

Manned Missions:

The Apollo missions, which were the only manned Lunar mission, were fairly quick in reaching the Moon. Naturally, it was the Apollo 11 mission, where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first men to walk on the Moon, that made the greatest headlines. This mission began on July 16th, 1969, where a Saturn V multi-stage rocket took the astronauts from Kennedy Space Center into orbit.

They reached lunar orbit after only 51 hours and 49 minutes in space, arriving on July 19th, 1969. The famous “One small step for man…” speech would not take place until July 21st, roughly 109 hours and 42 minutes into the mission. After dusting off from the Lunar surface, the Lunar Module spent another 2 days, 22 hours and 56 minutes getting back to Earth. So in addition to be the first manned mission, Apollo 11 was also the fastest trip to the Moon where astronauts were involved.

Fastest Mission to Date:

By far, the fastest mission to fly past the Moon was NASA’s  New Horizons Pluto mission. This mission had a speedy launch, with its Atlas V rocket accelerating it to a a speed of about 16.26 km per second (58,536 km/h; 36,373 mph). At this rate, it only took 8 hours and 35 minutes for it to get to the Moon from Earth. Quite a good start for this probe, which was on its way to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt at the time.

Although this is impressive, it’s worth keeping in mind that New Horizons was not slowing down to enter lunar orbit (as was the case all of the manned and unmanned mission to the Moon mentioned above). Hence, it was probably still accelerating long after it had placed the Moon in its rear view mirror (assuming it had one).

Mission concepts like the Space Launch System and Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) will also come into play in the near future. On December 5th, 2014, an unmanned test of the Orion capsule took place, officially known as Exploration Flight Test 1 . Having launched atop a Delta IV Heavy rocket, the capsule reached Low Earth Orbit, achieved two orbits of the Earth, and then splashed down again 4.5 hours later.

During the course of the flight, EFT-1 reached speeds of up to 8.9 km/s (32,187 km/h; 20,000 mph). At this velocity, an Orion mission could conceivably make it to the Moon (at an average distance of 384,400 km) in nearly 12 hours. Obviously, adjustments will have to be made for weight (since it will need a crew), and deceleration. But still, that’s not a bad framework for a tourist flight.

So, when space tourism begins mounting sight-seeing tours or missions to the Moon, they will have a few options. They could offer long cruises, gently gliding to the Moon using ion engines to slowly let the tourists take in the views. Or they could opt for the exhilarating rocket ride of a lifetime, blasting tourists off into space and whipping them back in just a day or two. Hard to say which one people would prefer, but surely there are many who would pay handsomely for the opportunity.

We Have written many interesting articles about the Moon here at Universe Today. Here’s Who Were The First Men On The Moon? , How Many People Have Walked On The Moon? , What Is The Distance To The Moon? , and You Could Fit All The Planets Between The Earth And The Moon .

For more information, be sure to check out NASA’s page on The Earth’s Moon and Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute

Original publication date April 10, 2008

Share this:

• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

34 Replies to “How Long Does It Take To Get To The Moon?”

Ian: I think I’d go for the quicker ride using chemical propulsion rather than the Ion propulsion option. While Ion propulsion would be far more fuel-efficient and several times faster than chemical propulsion — “in the long run” (it takes a lot of time to build up acceleration) — the tourist(s) onboard would die of boredom or old age 🙂 The additional mass of each tourist would only hinder the delay-time for an appreciable thrust to build up in the spacecraft, and having gained that thrust, how, afterwards does one slow it down again — the Ion propulsion system just wouldn’t be strong or quick enough for decelleration requirements. A chemical propulsion system, on the other hand, would do, however, that means adding fuel onboard which increases the mass again, and means a longer period to build up acceleration. A combination of the two (Ion and Chemical) is inevitably the answer down the line, however, these would probably be more applicable for trips to Mars and other planets/moon in our Solar System.

Joel: This sounds like the ideal time-requirement for the tourist(s) involved, and I don’t think the health problems associated with radiation risks…etc., would come into play if you stuck to your overall trip time-period as stated. Don’t know if I would survive those G’s you mention, however, please put me down for a trip when it eventually gets going (just mention my name to Richard — he’ll understand :-)) John — http://www.moonposter.ie Moon News — http://www.moonposter.ie/news.htm Moon Missions — http://www.moonposter.ie/missions.htm (Kaguya, Chang’e-1, Chandrayaan-1, LRO, GRAIL & LADEE, LunaGlob, LEO, MoonLITE)

What about more powerful ION drives? We could use a Earth-orbit space laser to power the drive.

What about photonic drives?

In 2006 “Dr. Young Bae of the Bae Institute first demonstrated his Photonic Laser Thruster (PLT) with an amplification factor of 3,000”

The paper says ~1mN per 10 watts and no reaction mass required.

http://baeinstitute.com/downloads/STAIF_2006_YK_Bae_FF_Paper.pdf

On paper, presuming slightly higher than a 300 kilometer orbit, with as low as possible an eccentricity and as near to originating in a low earth orbit well aligned with the plain of the moon’s orbit – our hypothetical Virgin Lunar spacecraft could, in theory, accelerate from 7330 meters per second to around 18,500 meters per second in around eleven minutes, while pulling from 1.8 to a high of 2.5 gees, arriving in the lunar vicinity in from 6.9 to 7.5 hours, depending on whether the destination was at it’s highest or lowest point in distance from Earth.

Of necessity, this TLI would result in anything but a free-return trajectory, of course, and breaking to slow for lunar orbital insertion would require just as rough and an even more sustained burn that would begin while while still nearly ten lunar radii distant from the closest passage over the 174 to 179 meridian – and end minutes before Loss of Signal, and in lunar orbit watching, an earthset. in a retrograde orbit falling around the moon’s farside.

Presuming one had enough fuel and very few and very hardy passengers, and were not attempting a landing, the return trip could be executed in a longer period after a shorter burn only half of which would still be underway at earthrise – mainly because it would originate from an orbital speed around the moon of ~1.6 kilometers per second and because my orbital mechanic skills breaks down quite a bit at this point … causing the margin of error to require a range of 11.9 to well over 24 plus hours to safely return to lunar orbit.

Either way, the tolerances clearly exceed the comfort and fuel requirements of any craft ever constructed, but, hey, the exposure to Van Allen radiation, solar protons and cosmic rays would certainly be reduced!

Nevertheless, one could hardly call such highly hyperbolic moonstorming “safe!”

Still, it’s interesting to consider the possibility of arriving at the moon in less time than many trans-Atlantic flights. It would be a the ride of a lifetime.

On second though, scratch that lunar meridian number. That is, of course, not correct. And forgive the typos. In an emergency situation requiring medical help for lunar missions, I think we’ll continue our work with telemedicine and biorobotics. LOL.

But won’t both ‘Ion’ and ‘Photonic’ drives as means of propulsion systems still require build-up times that the tourist(s) onboard the craft will have to wait for. There’s no doubt in the technology that both systems (and other systems like solar sails etc.,) produce propulsion, however, their use for getting the tourist(s) onboard to the Moon in any reasonable time is just too long, isn’t it? Those onboard would, therefore, end up waiting and waiting for any significant thrust to get moving close to the necessary speeds required, and by that time their patience would have run out. I looked at that paper you suggested and it’s obvious the research is based around micro, pico and nano satellites flying in formation (forgive me if I don’t fully understand their findings as I’m not an expert), but the propulsions quoted are for satellites weighing in from 10 – 100 kg. At minimum, spacecrafts [with toursist(s)] going to the Moon currently weigh in at their tonnage, and if they were to have an independent, proposed Ion and Photonic propulsion system onboard, these systems would have to be huge again for any appreciable output in light source requirements to get them moving, wouldn’t they? That means additional mass, which means build-up times are longer again, which means bored-to-death (dead) tourist(s) that never even get close to the Moon in sutiable times that they can endure.

John — http://www.moonposter.ie Moon News — http://www.moonposter.ie/news.htm Moon Missions — http://www.moonposter.ie/missions.htm (Kaguya, Chang’e-1, Chandrayaan-1, LRO, GRAIL & LADEE, LunaGlob, LEO, MoonLITE)

The ion slow boat to lunar absorption will become a religious pilgrimage.

Why not just go the traditional 2-3 day route and have photgrahic equipment on board to be able to “sight see” the cosmos while enroute?? There are plenty of things worth seeing in our own galaxie that could be easily glimpsed while on the way. Modern astronomy is incredible! Personally I could never be “bored” or even SLEEP on a three day trip to the moon. By the time I was done looking at Earth, the next day would be spent looking at the moon and visa versa. You would never see the same spot for very long anyway or see “it all”. We truely have the attention spans of a gnat when we talk of being “bored” on a 2-3 day trip to the moon! We should be ashamed of that American trait !!!!!

Fraser and Ian, thanks for this insightful article, but it would be nice if someone were to suggest a practical schedule for getting to the moon. Traveling at more than 1.25 g is probably not a good idea for overweight, smoker tourists and traveling ad less than .75 g might also have its risks, so what if we traveled somewhere inbetween, and what if we varied the length of acceleration.

Of course, the best and fastest way to get to the moon would be to simply build very powerful and long range transporter beams (grin)

If we could build a spaceship capable of 1G constant acceleration / deceleration for extended periods of time, then (if my calculations are correct) we could travel in comfort from Earth to the Moon in about 3.5 hours. One G accleration to the midway point takes about 1.75 hours, followed by 1G deceleration to reach the moon). This assumes we could turn off the engine and rotate the ship quickly at the midway point, with the passengers being weightless then.

thats gonna be a lot of burnt up fuel that will be just ‘gone’. I think we need use use mini nuclear power or something new.

This type of trip would be a dream and fantastic to anyone old enough to be a kid in the early 70s. I know that I have always wanted to go into space, orbiting the moon would be even that much better.

One has to wonder how quickly the price for such travel could become realistic and of course once the excitement in lunar orbits wears off for the populace in general I am sure an actual lunar landing and bouncing around on the moon would be one of the greatest adventures anyone could dream to go on.

I have to agree with Gudenboink, there is no way that anyone could get bored on a trip like this, anyone that could get bored on this grand adventure would not be interested in going in the first place.

I think that if they were to bill it as a two week “cruise” to the moon, it would work out the best. People spend weeks at sea on these cruise ships with nothing but the big blue to see- but there are other sources of entertainment during their trip.

Also, using a dedicated ship in space to travel to the moon seems to be the most practical. Launch into space in a rocket, dock with the “cruise ship” where you offload the fuel and other supplies, and then you are on your way. Once you return, you dock again with another ship bringing up passengers, and they take down those that are returning. This mode seems the most cost effective, as you are not launching the mass of the lunar transport vehicle, just the payload.

just my .02

Baggage allowance?

Overweight baggage fees?

Would it be cheaper for lighter folk, excellent excuse to lose some pounds

Fitness Guy & Gudenboink:

On boredom …etc. I was really talking in the context of using an Ion and Photonic driven spacecraft — it could take upto several weeks and months (years???) to get you and others to the Moon using these systems.

But as for the three-day trip to the Moon…I’d have one eye on the receding Earth below, the other eye on the expanding Moon above, and I difinitely wouldn’t be bored (or boring, as I may have come across in my comments re: Ion/Photonic context…SORRY!).

John — http://www.moonposter.ie

An Apollo 8 or 10 free-return trajectory will be the preferred option as high-speed means tons more propellant and, unless you’re landing, not a lot of loitering time near the Moon.

The whole subject of tourist travel in space is moonshine until there is a space elevator to reduce the cost of moving mass to earth orbit by orders of magnitude.

“…[New Horizons] was probably still accelerating as the Moon was a dot in its rear view window”.

Bzzt wrong. The initial boost only lasted a few minutes. New horizons only accelerated once once it passed the moon and that was the Jupiter gravity assist.

To ioresult:

Hehe, got me there. Damn! (But you can see by my uncertainty when I say *probably*.) Thanks for the info, good to know. Wow, that’s one hell of a boost!

Cheers, Ian

Si en el futuro el viaje a la Luna será algo tan rutinario como para enviar turistas, el viaje debería ser lo más corto posible. ¿Pero cuánto tarda un viaje a la Luna? Hombres y máquinas ya han hecho ese viaje, algunos tomaron mucho tiempo y otros fueron increíblemente veloces. […] Ian O’Neill para Universe Today

I personally think this is just a ploy to gain money and raise attention however my heart says I hope it is true

The sooner we start space touring and colonization the better. Humanity needs to span outwards to survive.

its rubbish

I have to agree with Richard Branson. Why not build hotels in space? That way the tourists can travel to the space hotel in a standard rocket (where they can experience the thrill of high g-forces). Thenonce they get to the space hotel, wait a few hours or days experiencing weightlessness, then take a shuttle to the Moon, using the Earth’s gravity as a slingshot effect to reduce fuel costs, then voila, the moon! On the return trip back to the space hotel, they can use the Moon’s gravity in a similar slingshot effect to get back to Earth. Of course, only the filthy rich tourists will help pay for the luxury of going to the Moon, while the rest of us cretins will grumble and complain, at least in the beginning. Someday going to the Moon will be comparitively expensive as having a car, or a personal computer. Does anyone remember how expensive they were when they first came out???? 😀

Rocket Maaaaaan! It would be cool to go up there.

Are humanity close to build a space ship capable of 1G constant acceleration as Phil Jackson says?

I hope Branson’s Lunar Service is better than Virgin Media Broadband and Virgin Trains, which are appalling – otherwise it is a belt ‘n’ braces job.

this is some verry interesting information. how long would this even take?

For fuel cost’s sake, because I’m assuming that rocket fuel costs quite a bit, why not consider an H2O electrolysis based rocket? Have a huge water tank, a small nuclear reactor onboard (or some other high energy production device), then split the water into HHO and burn it for the fuel. It might make hydrolygists upset if a considerable amount of Earth’s water is taken out of our atmosphere never to be recollected, but humans use now and worry later right?

i what to no how long does it take to get to the moon fast

can i get a dvd of the solar for my home?

What is the average time to get to the moon?? PLease I really want to know…

I can’t wait until all of this becomes a reality!!!

it is sooooooooooooo amazing how fast you can get to the moon!

Want to take a ride to the moon! well am Gone…… i´ll be back in 17.10hrs

Comments are closed.

How Long Does It Take to Get to the Moon, Exactly?

• by history tools
• November 19, 2023

Have you ever gazed up at the luminous, pockmarked face of the Moon and wondered exactly how long it would take to traverse the vast cosmic gulfs between here and there aboard a real-life spacecraft? It‘s one of the most fundamental questions around lunar travel, yet the answer varies widely based on key factors like distance and speed. Read on as we explore everything that determines how long it takes to get to Earth‘s only natural satellite!

An overview: Reaching the Moon is not simply a matter of pointing a spacecraft upwards and accelerating. While the Moon may seem close, it‘s actually over 200,000 miles away on average – far enough that even light takes 1.3 seconds to cross that gap. Several major variables impact travel time, including the distance itself which varies monthly due to the Moon‘s orbital eccentricity. Spacecraft velocity is also pivotal – the faster it can move, the shorter the trip will be. However, fuel requirements and payload capacity place practical limits on speed. Plus, orbital mechanics dictates most missions take indirect paths that require more time. Lastly, the mission purpose itself affects duration. Crewed flights strive for greater speed for astronaut safety, while robotic sample returns are ok with slower pacing. Given all these factors, most journeys end up lasting 3-4 days using conservative trajectories optimized for efficiency over raw speed.

The Distance Between Earth and Moon Fluctuates Regularly

The lunar distance constantly changes month to month thanks to the moon‘s elliptical orbit. At perigee – its closest approach – our celestial companion ventures only 225,623 miles away. But two weeks later at apogee, the Moon reaches its greatest distance of 252,088 miles. This over 26,000 mile difference has major impact on travel time. Missions launching when the moon is at perigee can shave almost 27,000 miles off the trip compared to launching during an apogee phase!

Perigee occurs once each 27.3 day orbit when the Moon is on the same side of Earth as the Sun. Apogee happens two weeks later when the Moon lies opposite the Sun. This regular near and far oscillation stems from gravitational interactions among Earth, Sun and Moon that cause the lunar orbit to elongate over time rather than staying circular.

Accounting for these orbital eccentricities can help shave hours or even days off lunar voyages by timing launches to take advantage of the shorter perigee distances.

Spacecraft Velocity is Equally Important

Velocity – how fast a spacecraft is moving – also critically impacts travel time to the Moon. The basic requirement is reaching at least 25,000 mph to escape Earth‘s gravitational pull. But the faster beyond that minimum, the shorter the trip can be. Some key velocity examples:

• Apollo Missions – 24,500 mph. 3 day journey times.
• Cassini – 42,300 mph passing Moon. Could reach Moon in under 24 hrs.
• New Horizons – Fastest ever at over 36,000 mph. Passed Moon in 8.5 hours.

However, extremely high velocities demand enormous amounts of propulsive energy, necessitating bigger rockets and more fuel. Accelerating to 36,000+ mph is not feasible for most robotic science missions due to mass and cost constraints. There is always a trade-off between velocity and practical spacecraft engineering limits.

Orbital Mechanics Lengthens the Optimal Route

For minimal fuel requirements, it is most efficient to launch a spacecraft into an intermediate elliptical orbit around Earth first. Then at the right moment, a brief propulsive burn ejects it from orbit into a trans-lunar trajectory. This indirect pathway does use extra time, but greatly reduces fuel needed compared to direct ascent.

Shooting straight for the Moon from launch could slash up to a day off travel time, but would require much heavier rockets and huge fuel margins. Gravity assists from intermediate orbits enable ‘free‘ acceleration not possible with direct paths. The Apollo missions leveraged multiple Earth and lunar flybys to build momentum at no fuel cost while meandering to the Moon over 3-4 days.

While counterintuitive, orbital mechanics shows the fastest route is rarely the most efficient when fuel savings from gravity manipulation is considered. This principle governs all space travel, from reaching the Moon to voyaging to the outer planets.

The Mission Itself Dictates Time Requirements

The specific objectives and needs of a lunar mission help determine how quickly it must reach the Moon. Let‘s look at some examples:

• Crewed missions – Apollo astronauts needed to get to the Moon pronto for safety reasons. Travel time averaged around 3.5 days.
• Robotic sample return – Chang‘e 5 took 5 days to gently bring back lunar materials. Speed was not a priority.
• One-way impactors – NASA‘s LCROSS orbited for 4 months before crashing into the Moon‘s south pole.
• Orbiters – LADEE, LRO and others take 2-4 weeks entering prolonged mapping orbits.
• Landers – Touchdown requires braking burns, so landers like Surveyor moved slower at 4-5 days.

Clearly crewed missions aimed for greater speed to protect the lives of astronauts. Robotic missions involved less urgency, allowing for more sedate pacing depending on objectives. One-way impactors could afford greater risk and velocity. Sample returns and orbiters balanced caution and precision over raw speed.

Fastest Known Times Reaching the Moon

New Horizons – 8 hours 35 minutes. At 36,373 mph, this probe performed a lunar flyby gravity assist on its way to Pluto, setting the speed record.

Parker Solar Probe – 37 minutes (estimated). Already the fastest human craft ever at ~365,000 mph, the Parker probe could theoretically reach the Moon in under an hour!

Light – 1.3 seconds. Nothing beats light speed! A sunbeam could make the trip in the blink of an eye.

Most Journeys Take 3-4 Days

Given the many variables involved in lunar trajectories, what‘s the typical flight duration with current technology? Historical data shows 3-4 days is common for both crewed and robotic missions. Early Apollo flights squeezed this to as low as 2.5 days near the end of the program. Only flybys have managed significantly shorter times.

It seems space agencies are content to trade a bit of extra travel time for fuel efficiency and cost savings. Shaving a few hours comes at great effort and expense with diminishing returns. So plan on enjoying the scenery out your spacecraft window for a few days enroute to humankind‘s only Moon!

Related posts:

• Why the Concorde Supersonic Jet was Grounded: The Demise of an Aviation Dream
• AMD vs. Intel Gaming: Which CPU is Stronger for Video Games?
• The 5 Best Phones for Kids: A 2023 Buyer‘s Guide
• What Is 5GE, Anyway? Everything Explained
• What is the Artemis Program? Everything You Need to Know
• 6 Reasons You May Want to Avoid a New Pair of Studio Headphones Today
• OpenGL vs DirectX: An In-Depth Technical and Historical Comparison
• The Meta Quest Pro VR Headset: Release Date, Price, Specs, and Everything Else We Know

• Subscribe to BBC Science Focus Magazine
• Previous Issues
• Future tech
• Everyday science
• Planet Earth
• Newsletters

How long does it take to get to the Moon?

From Apollo to Artemis, here's how long it takes to get to the Moon.

Toby Saunders

How long does it take to get to the Moon ? If you’re planning your next weekend break to spend time on the lunar surface, you’ll need to know exactly how long it will take to get there.

While we’re a ways off building bases on the Moon , NASA’s Artemis mission is taking people back onto the lunar surface for the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972. The aim of the Artemis mission is to build the Lunar Gateway , which will place a space station in lunar orbit to act as a staging post for future trips to the Moon.

Artemis 3 is set to bring people back onto the Moon for the first time in over 50 years. This mission is likely to take place in 2026 at the earliest – but how long will it take the astronauts to get to the Moon?

Read on to find out how far away the Moon is from the Earth, how long it takes to get to the Moon, how long it took Apollo 11, and how long it takes a probe to get there.

How far away is the Moon?

The Moon doesn’t have a fixed distance away from the Earth. Just as the Earth’s orbit isn’t 100 per cent circular around the Sun, the Moon’s orbit isn’t around the Earth. It gets closer and further away over time.

The Moon is 363,104km from Earth at its closest point (perigee) and 405,696km away at its farthest (apogee). Taking these measurements, the average distance between the Earth and the Moon is around 384,400km.

The elliptical nature of the Moon’s orbit of the Earth is just one of many factors scientists need to take into account when planning missions up there.

It’s difficult to give a definitive answer on how long it takes to get to the Moon but it should take just over three days . There are a multitude of factors to account for, including the changing distance between us and the Moon, take-off trajectory, whether the craft is manned or unmanned, choice of propulsion system, and whether it’s landing, orbiting, or flying by.

During NASA’s Apollo program, the fastest mission was Apollo 8, which took 69 hours and eight minutes to enter the lunar orbit insertion burn. This was the quickest of NASA's Apollo missions – each mission after this had flight durations of 74 hours and over. The final Moon-landing mission, Apollo 17, took 86 hours and 14 minutes to reach the Moon.

The Artemis 1, an uncrewed craft, took five days in 2022 to reach the Moon’s orbit. Travelling to the Moon has become slower in the years since the 'one small step for man and a giant leap for mankind' took place, mainly because we have moved on from a direct transfer trajectory to save on fuel and costs.

How long did it take to get to the Moon in 1969?

The Apollo 11 Moon-landing mission in 1969 took astronauts Neil Armstrong , Buzz Aldrin , and Michael Collins 75 hours and 49 minutes to get to and land on the Moon. That’s just over three days. This is the time it took for them to actually land on the Moon, not just entering its orbit.

According to NASA, an entire Apollo mission, from leaving Earth and landing back at home took a total of eight days, three hours, 18 minutes, and 35 seconds. Here is the full list of Apollo missions to the Moon and how long they took:

• Apollo 8: 69 hours, 8 minutes (1968)
• Apollo 10: 75 hours, 55 minutes (1969)
• Apollo 11: 75 hours, 49 minutes (1969)
• Apollo 12: 83 hours, 25 minutes (1969)
• Apollo 13: 76 hours (1970)
• Apollo 14: 81 hours, 56 minutes (1971)
• Apollo 15: 78 hours, 31 minutes (1971)
• Apollo 16: 74 hours, 28 minutes (1972)
• Apollo 17: 86 hours, 14 minutes (1972)

How long does it take a probe to get to the Moon?

A probe can get to the Moon in around eight and a half hours.

The New Horizons probe took eight hours and 35 minutes to reach the moon. It eventually reached Pluto after nine years in 2015.

Other probes can take far longer to reach the Moon, however, and the time taken is dependent on different factors including fuel used and more. The European Space Agency’s Smart-1 probe in 2003, for example, took one year and six weeks to get to the Moon. Its use of electric-ion propulsion (using up just 82kg of Xenon fuel), the reason behind its slow speed.

• What's the largest planet in the Universe?
• When is the next full Moon? Your lunar astronomy guide
• Why does the Sun produce so much radiation?

Share this article

• Terms & Conditions
• Privacy policy
• Cookies policy
• Code of conduct
• Magazine subscriptions
• Manage preferences

Moon in Motion

Overview from space.

Imagine you’re in a spaceship, traveling away from Earth. As you sail onward, you see our planet and its Moon locked together in their endless, circling, gravitational embrace. Your distant view gives you a unique perspective on the Moon that can be hard to visualize from the ground, where the Moon appears to sweep through the sky as an ever-changing globe of light.

From your astronaut’s viewpoint, you can see that the Moon is an average of 238,855 miles (384,399 km) from Earth, or about the space that could be occupied by 30 Earths. It travels around our planet once every 27.322 days in an elliptical orbit, an elongated circle. The Moon is tidally locked with Earth, which means that it spins on its axis exactly once each time it orbits our planet. Because of this, people on Earth only ever see one side of the Moon. We call this motion synchronous rotation.

The Moon’s orbit is tilted about 5 degrees compared to the plane of Earth’s orbit around the Sun. Because of this tilt, the Moon as seen from Earth’s perspective usually passes above or below the Sun when it passes between us and the Sun. The tilt of the Moon’s orbit prevents us from having monthly solar and lunar eclipses.

You Might Also Like

Suggested Searches

• Climate Change
• Expedition 64
• Mars perseverance
• SpaceX Crew-2
• International Space Station
• View All Topics A-Z

Humans in Space

Earth & climate, the solar system, the universe, aeronautics, learning resources, news & events.

NASA/JAXA’s XRISM Mission Captures Unmatched Data With Just 36 Pixels

NASA Scientists Gear Up for Solar Storms at Mars

NASA Uses Small Engine to Enhance Sustainable Jet Research

• Search All NASA Missions
• A to Z List of Missions
• Upcoming Launches and Landings
• Spaceships and Rockets
• Communicating with Missions
• James Webb Space Telescope
• Hubble Space Telescope
• Why Go to Space
• Astronauts Home
• Commercial Space
• Destinations
• Living in Space
• Explore Earth Science
• Earth, Our Planet
• Earth Science in Action
• Earth Multimedia
• Earth Science Researchers
• Pluto & Dwarf Planets
• Asteroids, Comets & Meteors
• The Kuiper Belt
• The Oort Cloud
• Skywatching
• The Search for Life in the Universe
• Black Holes
• The Big Bang
• Dark Energy & Dark Matter
• Earth Science
• Planetary Science
• Astrophysics & Space Science
• The Sun & Heliophysics
• Biological & Physical Sciences
• Lunar Science
• Citizen Science
• Astromaterials
• Aeronautics Research
• Human Space Travel Research
• Science in the Air
• NASA Aircraft
• Flight Innovation
• Supersonic Flight
• Air Traffic Solutions
• Green Aviation Tech
• Drones & You
• Technology Transfer & Spinoffs
• Space Travel Technology
• Technology Living in Space
• Manufacturing and Materials
• Science Instruments
• For Kids and Students
• For Educators
• For Colleges and Universities
• For Professionals
• Science for Everyone
• Requests for Exhibits, Artifacts, or Speakers
• STEM Engagement at NASA
• NASA's Impacts
• Centers and Facilities
• Directorates
• Organizations
• People of NASA
• Internships
• Our History
• Doing Business with NASA
• Get Involved
• Aeronáutica
• Ciencias Terrestres
• Sistema Solar
• All NASA News
• Video Series on NASA+
• Newsletters
• Social Media
• Media Resources
• Upcoming Launches & Landings
• Virtual Events
• Sounds and Ringtones
• Interactives
• STEM Multimedia

Two Small NASA Satellites Will Measure Soil Moisture, Volcanic Gases

NASA Balloons Head North of Arctic Circle for Long-Duration Flights

NASA’s Hubble Pauses Science Due to Gyro Issue

NASA Selects Commercial Service Studies to Enable Mars Robotic Science

NASA’s Commercial Partners Deliver Cargo, Crew for Station Science

NASA Shares Lessons of Human Systems Integration with Industry

NASA-Led Study Provides New Global Accounting of Earth’s Rivers

NASA’s ORCA, AirHARP Projects Paved Way for PACE to Reach Space

What’s Up: May 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA

May’s Night Sky Notes: Stargazing for Beginners

NASA’s Webb Maps Weather on Planet 280 Light-Years Away

Webb Captures Top of Iconic Horsehead Nebula in Unprecedented Detail

NASA Photographer Honored for Thrilling Inverted In-Flight Image

NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Team Says Goodbye … for Now

Big Science Drives Wallops’ Upgrades for NASA Suborbital Missions

Tech Today: Stay Safe with Battery Testing for Space

NASA Grant Brings Students at Underserved Institutions to the Stars

Washington State High Schooler Wins 2024 NASA Student Art Contest

NASA STEM Artemis Moon Trees

NASA’s Commitment to Safety Starts with its Culture

NASA Challenge Gives Space Thruster Commercial Boost

Diez maneras en que los estudiantes pueden prepararse para ser astronautas

Astronauta de la NASA Marcos Berríos

Resultados científicos revolucionarios en la estación espacial de 2023

Artemis i travel essentials: the ultimate personal tour guide for your trip to the moon.

Michael Bock

1.) get your passport and look up your boarding pass , 2.) do a little research , 3.) pack for your trip , 4.) check out your accommodations , 5.) plot your route , 6.) before you leave… .

The Moon. Earth’s most famous natural satellite … and your new travel destination. 

From its wide vistas and secluded craters, to its unbeatable views of our own planet, visiting the Moon is a must-see for every well-seasoned space traveler’s bucket list. Lunar adventures have been quite popular among uncrewed spacecraft in recent years, but it’s been a generation since humans have set foot on the lunar surface. That is changing with NASA’s Artemis missions. 

This year, NASA is embarking on an exciting journey to the Moon—and we’re inviting you to come along*. 

Artemis I  is an uncrewed flight test that will lay the foundation for a sustained long-term presence on and around the Moon. Launching this summer, the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and integrated Orion spacecraft will help us get a feel for what astronauts will experience on future flights. Artemis I is an important step in NASA’s long-term goals for space exploration, paving the way for us to land the first woman and the first person of color on the Moon, explore more of the lunar surface than ever before — and prepare to travel on to Mars.  

This handy travel guide is designed to help everyone from space travel rookies to seasoned galactic explorers figure out exactly what to see, what to bring, and how to get ready as we return to the Moon.  

Before you book your ticket, make you sure you get your Artemis passport ready! Join the virtual guest list for Artemis launches and receive a special Artemis I virtual guest passport and stamp after launch along with mission updates and interactive opportunities. Over 300,000+ virtual guests from around the world have already joined! 

If you were one of the 3 million people who submitted your name to be flown around the Moon aboard the Orion spacecraft, you can look up your boarding pass and print or download it at your leisure. If you didn’t submit your name, don’t worry — you can still download and fill out a blank boarding pass!

Since you’re headed to the Moon, here is your opportunity to check out images and content about the Moon and then create your own! Submit your #NASAMoonSnap and we will be featuring some entries during the launch broadcast or on NASA’s social media.  

Artemis I will blast off from NASA’s spaceport at Kennedy Space Center and fly farther than any spacecraft built for humans has ever flown. Watch a preview of your flight to get the highlights of the mission. 

You’ve got your papers sorted — now it’s time to put together your packing list ! Take a look at what others have decided they would pack for the Moon, including astronauts , NASA photographers , and other creative people like you !  

Grab some reading materials. While you’re sure to get some incredible window views as the Orion spacecraft travels thousands of miles beyond the Moon, you’ll likely want some entertainment during the 4-6 week mission. If you’re looking for some reading material, check the First Woman graphic novel, the You Are Going children’s book, and the Moonikin webcomic . 

And set a playlist.  No trip is complete without a playlist! Check out the NASA Moon Tunes playlist put together by Third Rock Radio and compiled from over a million votes all around the world. And if podcasts are more your speed, check out this curated Artemis podcast playlist on Soundcloud. 

You’ll be flying in comfort aboard Orion, the spacecraft that will take astronauts to the Moon on future Artemis missions. Among the science, research equipment, and mementos you’ll be travelling with are Commander Moonikin Campos, Helga, and Zohar. These human-bodied manikins are gathering important data for future missions— read their story here . 

Following along at home? You can decorate the walls of your own ‘crew cabin’ with our beautiful travel destination posters : 

Download Artemis: Visionary (8.07 MB) | Download Artemis: Courageous (7.31 MB) | Download Artemis: Galvanizing (8.98 MB)

Before heading out, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with your route . That’s why we’ve put together a flight map with important milestones you’ll reach on your trip beyond the Moon and back. 

Our travel itinerary will bring us within about 60 miles of the Moon’s surface—a prime opportunity for sightseeing.  Learn more about your destination   on our Moon site .  

Can’t wait to see the SLS rocket on the launch pad? Picture it in your own backyard! Try out our Snapchat AR Lens: Backyard Rocket and see how the launch would appear from the mission control room at Kennedy Space Center. 

And know where to track your flight . Once you’re on your way to join the Artemis I mission, you can follow along with telemetry updates and see exactly where Orion is every step of the journey.

However you choose to follow along our journey, we’re glad to have you with us.  Be sure to follow @NASAArtemis on Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram , or subscribe to our newsletter to get the latest updates as we prepare for our next great era of discovery. 

* DISCLAIMER: As much as we’d like to bring everyone aboard Orion for a flight around the Moon, Artemis I is an uncrewed mission. So please enjoy the next best thing: free and fun activities that you can participate in from the comfort of your own home. 

• How Long Does it Take To Get to the Moon?

For us to fully grasp how long it takes to get to the Moon, it is vital to understand the distance between the Moon and the Earth. The average distance between the Moon and the Earth is 238,857 miles. The figures give the average distance because different variables make the distance between the Earth and the Moon to differ from one phase to another, hence affecting how long it takes to get to the Moon. The Moon naturally orbits the Earth in an elliptical path, because of this, sometimes Moon is closer or farther away from Earth, which in turn greatly affects how long it may take to get to the Moon. Different countries have organized missions and traveled to the Moon and the time taken for all the missions have varied considerably.

Unmanned Missions

These are endeavors to the Moon without the physical presence of people onboard to control the movements of the spacecraft. One of the slowest yet advanced missions to the Moon was by the ESA’s SMART-1 which took the longest time ever recorded of one year, one month and two weeks using an ion-propelled engine. The second unmanned mission was the Chang’e-1 which took five days. Chang’e-2 followed on October 1st, 2010 taking four days and 16 hours before arriving in lunar orbit. The next mission launch took place at the end of 2013 becoming the fastest Change mission arriving in the lunar orbit after only four days and 12 hours and 23 minutes.

Manned Missions

With the presence of people onboard, manned missions have been taking a relatively short time to reach the Moon from the Earth's surface. The Apollo mission is the only Moon mission that was manned with renowned astronauts being the first beings to ever set foot on the lunar surface. The Apollo 11 mission took 51 hours and 49 minutes to arrive on the lunar surface back on July 19th, 1969, hence becoming the fastest spacecraft mission to the Moon that had astronauts who then took 1,376 minutes to return.

Fastest Recorded Missions to Date

NASA’s New Horizons Pluto mission was the fastest ever mission that went past the Moon. With a speedy launch that utilized the advanced technological systems, it took the New Horizon 515 minutes to arrive on the lunar surface before venturing on to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. A mission was in 2014 undertaken using a device called ‘Orion Capsule.' It managed to reach different orbits of the Earth and return in 270 minutes breaking significant records. Through calculations, this showed that the Orion mission could reach the lunar in approximately 12 hours after covering an average distance of 238,857 miles. As plans are underway for the creation of space tourism in future, taking into consideration how long it will take to reach the Moon is vital and the type of technologies that will be utilized to make the journey and experience enjoyable and safe.

• World Facts

More in World Facts

The Largest Countries In Asia By Area

The World's Oldest Civilizations

Is England Part of Europe?

Olympic Games History

Southeast Asian Countries

How Many Countries Are There In Oceania?

Is Australia A Country Or A Continent?

Is Turkey In Europe Or Asia?

Top Moon Questions

What do you wonder? Some of your frequently asked Moon questions, answered.

Moon in Motion: Phases, Patterns, and More

Does the moon rotate does the moon spin on its axis.

Yes! The time it takes for the Moon to rotate once on its axis is equal to the time it takes for the Moon to orbit once around Earth. This means that the same side of the Moon always faces our planet.Your browser does not support the video tag.The Moon always keeps the same face towards Earth because it takes the same amount of time to rotate on its axis as it does to orbit our planet. This is called synchronous rotation. Credit: NASA's Scientific Visualization StudioIf the Moon did not rotate on its axis at all, or if it rotated at any other rate, then we would see different parts of the Moon throughout the month.

Does the Moon orbit Earth?

Yes. The Moon takes about one month to orbit Earth (27.3 days to complete a revolution, but 29.5 days to change from New Moon to New Moon). As the Moon completes each 27.3-day orbit around Earth, both Earth and the Moon are moving around the Sun. Because of this change in position, sunlight appears to hit the Moon at a slightly different angle on day 27 than it does on day zero ― even though the Moon itself has already traveled all the way around Earth. It takes a little more than two additional days for sunlight to hit the Moon in the same way it did on day zero. This is why it takes 29.5 days to get from new moon to new moon, even though it doesn’t take quite that long for the Moon itself to travel once around Earth.

Are Moon phases the same everywhere on Earth?

Yes, everyone sees the same phases of the Moon. People north and south of the equator do see the Moon’s current phase from different angles, though. If you traveled to the other hemisphere, the Moon would be in the same phase as it is at home, but it would appear upside down compared to what you're used to! For example, on March 8, 2021, the Moon was in a waning crescent phase. Seen from the Northern Hemisphere, the waning crescent appeared on the left side of the Moon. Seen from the Southern Hemisphere, the crescent appeared on the right.

Are Moon phases caused by shadows from Earth?

No. The only time Earth’s shadow affects our view of the Moon is during a lunar eclipse . Generally, one half of the Moon ― the side facing the Sun ― is brightly illuminated, and one is in shadow. We use moon phases to describe the way our perspective on the half-lit Moon changes as Earth and Moon move through space over the course of a month. During a crescent moon, for example, the part of the Moon that faces Earth is mostly in shadow, and the far side of the Moon is mostly sunlit . The visible crescent is the only part of the lunar nearside that is experiencing daytime.

Why do we see Moon phases?

The Moon is always half-lit by the sun (except during a lunar eclipse ). The side of the Moon facing the Sun appears bright because of reflected sunlight, and the side of the Moon facing away from the Sun is dark. Our perspective on the half-lit Moon changes as the Moon orbits Earth . When the side nearest to us is fully lit, we call this a full Moon. When the far side is fully lit and the near side is dark, we call this a new Moon. When we see other phases , we are looking at the division between lunar night (the dark part) and day (the bright part).

What is the Moon really shaped like?

The Moon is shaped like an imperfect sphere. From a distance, it looks nearly round. Seen up close, the Moon’s surface is a three-dimensional landscape of mountains, valleys, and craters. Explore the Moon’s surface from wherever you are in this 3D map built from data captured by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). From Earth, our view of the Moon's sunlit surface changes throughout the month. Learn about crescent moons, full moons, and other moon phases here .

Can I see the Moon during the day?

Yes! The Moon is up just as much during the day as it is at night, but you might not notice it as easily. Because the Sun is also up, and because the Moon phases that are most often visible in daylight show us only a little bit of the Moon’s bright side (like the crescent Moon phases), the Moon is harder to see during the day.

Why does the Moon rise and set? Can people in different countries see the Moon on the same day?

Moonrises and moonsets occur for the same reason as sunrises and sunsets: Earth rotates once a day. This means that observers in many different parts of the world have their turn looking at the Moon throughout each day, just like we all see the same Sun over the course of 24 hours.

Moonrise and moonset times change each day as the Moon moves through its monthly orbit around Earth. Learn more about the Moon's motion through space here .

Why does the Moon look largest close to the horizon?

This is an optical illusion. Prove it for yourself here !

Origin and Nature of the Moon

Does the moon make its own light (like the sun does).

The Moon does not make its own light. “Moonlight” is really sunlight that has reflected off of the Moon’s surface.

What is moonlight? How is the Moon lit?

The Moon does not make its own light. All moonlight is reflected sunlight. The bright part of the Moon is experiencing daytime.

What is the Moon? Is it a planet?

The Moon is a natural satellite , or a space object that orbits around something else. Our Moon is Earth’s natural satellite. In general, a moon is a natural satellite of a planet, and a planet is a special kind of natural satellite that orbits a star and also meets other conditions. Learn more: What makes a planet a planet ?

How did the Moon form?

The leading theory is that a Mars-sized object collided with Earth billions of years ago, and debris from this collision eventually formed the Moon. Here is an animation that shows what this might have looked like:

Does the Moon have gravity? Do things float “up” when dropped on the Moon?

The Moon does have gravity. Because the Moon has less mass than Earth, its gravitational pull is weaker (about one-sixth of Earth’s). On the Moon, you’d be able to jump about six times as high as you can on Earth ― but you would still come back down!

What would happen if there was no Moon? How does the Moon affect Earth?

Earth would be a very different world if it had no Moon. The Moon's gravity keeps our planet from wobbling on its axis too much, which helps to stabilize our climate. The Moon also plays an important role in creating Earth's ocean tides .

Discover More Topics From NASA

Lunar Discovery and Exploration

Skywatching

Watch CBS News

NASA introduces 4 astronauts who will fly to the moon on Artemis II mission

By William Harwood

Updated on: April 3, 2023 / 7:29 PM EDT / CBS News

A Canadian astronaut and three NASA veterans, including one of the world's most experienced female spacewalkers, will fly around the moon next year in the first piloted voyage beyond Earth orbit since the Apollo program ended 50 years ago, the space agency announced Monday.

NASA's Reid Wiseman , Christina Koch and Victor Glover will join Canadian rookie Jeremy Hansen aboard an Orion crew capsule for the Artemis program 's second fight, the first carrying a crew bound for the moon. The Artemis II mission is intended to pave the way toward the first moon landing — Artemis III — in the 2025-26 timeframe.

"Artemis II is more than a mission to the moon and back," Glover said. "It's more than a mission that has to happen before we send people to the surface of the moon. It is the next step on the journey that gets humanity to Mars. ... And this crew will never forget that."

Wiseman, Koch and Glover are all veterans of long-duration stays aboard the International Space Station while Hansen will be making his first space flight.

"It's been more than a half-century since astronauts journeyed to the moon. Well, folks, that's about to change.The mission to the moon will launch four pioneers, but it will carry more than astronauts — Artemis II will carry the hopes of millions of people around the world," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said before introducing the crew. 

Navy Capt. Reid Wiseman, 47, a widowed father of two, is a veteran F/A-18F Super Hornet pilot who holds a master's in systems engineering. He launched aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft in 2014 and spent 165 days aboard the space station, then served as chief astronaut after his return to Earth.

Koch, 44, holds a master's in electrical engineering who has experience in Antarctic research. She also launched aboard a Soyuz and spent nearly a full year aboard the lab in 2019-20, venturing outside for six spacewalks, including three all-female excursions. With 42 hours and 15 minutes of EVA time, she ranks third on the list of most experienced female spacewalkers.

Glover, 46, is a Navy captain, a father of four and one of only a half dozen African Americans in NASA's astronaut corps. He launched to the station aboard the first operational SpaceX Crew Dragon mission in 2021-22, logging 168 days in orbit. Glover is a veteran test pilot with more than 3,000 hours of flight time and more than 400 carrier landings.

Hansen, a 47-year-old colonel in the Canadian armed forces and father of three, is a veteran F-18 fighter pilot. He will be the ninth Canadian to fly in space and the first to venture beyond Earth orbit.

A Canadian seat on the historic mission acknowledges Canada's development of the robot arm that was key to assembling the International Space Station and the ongoing development of another arm for NASA's planned Gateway lunar orbit outpost

"So here we have it: Reid, Victor, Christina and Jeremy," Nelson told a packed hangar at Ellington Field near the Johnson Space Center in Houston. "Each of these adventures has their own story, but together, they represent our creed: E pluribus unum: out of many, one.

"Together, we will usher in a new era of exploration for a new generation of star sailors and dreamers, the Artemis generation," he said. "Together, we are going to the moon to Mars, and beyond."

Said Hansen: "There are two reasons why a Canadian is going to the moon. The first one is American leadership. It is not lost on any of us that the United States could choose to go back to the moon by themselves. But America has made a very deliberate choice over decades to curate a global team."

The second reason, he said, was Canada's "can-do attitude."

"For decades now, literally thousands upon thousands of Canadians have risen to that challenge to bring real value to the international partnership with respect to space exploration. ... And all of those have added up to this moment where a Canadian is going to the moon with our international partnership. And it is glorious!"

NASA is focused on operating the space station through 2030 while transitioning to deep space exploration with Artemis missions to the moon and, eventually, piloted flights to Mars. It's anyone's guess how far off a Mars mission might be, but NASA fully intends to land astronauts back on the moon within the next few years.

As the Obama administration was winding down, NASA was tentatively planning a return to the moon toward the end of the decade. But the Trump administration ordered the agency to accelerate those plans, initially calling for astronauts to land on the moon by the end of 2024 — a clearly unrealistic expectation then and now.

Those plans eventually morphed into what NASA calls the Artemis program, a series of missions designed to establish a long-term presence on and around the moon.

Along with ongoing development of the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft, which will be put to the test in the Artemis II mission, NASA has hired SpaceX to build a lunar lander based on the design of the company's yet-to-fly Starship rocket.

At the same time, NASA contractors are building a mini space station, Gateway, that will be robotically assembled in lunar orbit to serve as a research outpost and staging base for flights to and from the surface.

For Artemis, NASA is targeting the lunar south pole where data from orbiting spacecraft indicate deposits of ice might be present in permanently shadowed craters. Ice could provide future astronauts a valuable source of air, water and rocket propellants — hydrogen and oxygen — to facilitate future deep space exploration.

The first Artemis mission , launched last October, sent an unpiloted Orion capsule around the moon in the maiden flight of NASA's Space Launch System moon rocket.

For the Artemis II mission, Wiseman, Glover, Koch and Hansen will be the first astronauts to launch atop the gargantuan SLS rocket and the first to test the Orion capsule in flight.

They'll spend a day in a high Earth orbit, testing Orion's rendezvous systems, and then fire the spacecraft's service module engine to put the ship on a trajectory that will carry the crew well beyond the moon.

Unlike the historic Apollo 8 crew, which orbited the moon in 1968, the Artemis II crew will not go into orbit or fly closer than about 5,000 miles of the cratered surface. Instead, they will fly a so-called "free-return" trajectory, using the moon's gravity to bend the flight path back toward Earth and a Pacific Ocean splashdown.

"We're going to hear the words 'go for launch' on top of the most powerful rocket NASA's ever made, the Space Launch System, and we're gonna ride that rocket for eight minutes into Earth orbit," Koch said.

"We're not going to go to the moon right away. We're going to stay in an amazing high orbit, reaching a peak of tens of thousands of miles while we test out all the systems on Orion, and even see how it maneuvers in space. And then if everything looks good, we're heading to the moon."

The outbound quarter-million-mile journey will take four days. Along the way, Koch said, the crew will continue testing "every bit of Orion going around the far side of the moon, heading home, going through the Earth's atmosphere at over 25,000 miles per hour and splashing down in the Pacific. So am I excited? Absolutely!"

Assuming Artemis II goes well, NASA plans to send another four astronauts to the moon in the 2025-26 timeframe — Artemis III — including the next man and the first woman to walk on the moon.

NASA has also said the Artemis program will send the first person of color to the lunar surface, although it's not yet known whether that yet-to-be-named astronaut will be assigned to the Artemis III crew or a downstream mission.

One of the biggest unknowns at this point is the status of the Starship lander.

The Starship relies on SpaceX's huge super-heavy booster to reach Earth orbit, followed by multiple refueling missions to load it up with enough cryogenic propellants to head for the moon. One unpiloted moon landing is planned before the Artemis III flight with astronauts aboard.

SpaceX is gearing up to launch the first super heavy/Starship on an unpiloted maiden test fight around Earth. Whether SpaceX can launch enough test flights over the next two to three years to give NASA the confidence it will need for a piloted lunar landing mission remains to be seen.

• Artemis Program

Bill Harwood has been covering the U.S. space program full-time since 1984, first as Cape Canaveral bureau chief for United Press International and now as a consultant for CBS News.

More from CBS News

New NASA images show iconic Horsehead Nebula in unprecedented detail

"Potential serial killer" arrested after 2 women found dead in Florida

U.S. bans most uses of paint-stripping solvent after dozens of deaths

Gang leader who turned D.C. area into "hunting ground" gets life in prison

• Skip to main content
• Keyboard shortcuts for audio player

These are the 4 astronauts who'll take a trip around the moon next year

Joe Hernandez

This combination of photos shows, from left, astronauts Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, and Reid Wiseman. AP hide caption

This combination of photos shows, from left, astronauts Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch, and Reid Wiseman.

NASA and the Canadian Space Agency have announced the names of the four astronauts who will travel on a spaceflight around the Moon next year.

The group will fly aboard NASA's Orion spacecraft as part of the Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the surface of the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years, establish a long-term presence on the lunar surface and eventually put humans on Mars.

The four-person crew will include NASA astronauts Christina Hammock Koch, Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman as well as Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen.

NASA's Artemis I returns from the moon with hopes to get astronauts back there soon

"We have a lot to celebrate, and it's so much more than the four names that have been announced. We need to celebrate this moment in human history," said Glover, Artemis II's pilot, during a Monday morning event to announce the crew. "Artemis II is more than a mission to the Moon and back. It's more than a mission that has to happen before we send people to the surface of the Moon. It is the next step on the journey that gets humanity to Mars."

Wiseman and Glover both have taken flights to the International Space Station, and were both captains in the U.S. Navy. Koch was an engineer and a scientific field worker before becoming an astronaut, and her 328-day stint in space set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman. Hansen, an astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency, served as a fighter pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force.

The mission will be the second phase of NASA's Artemis program. Artemis I occurred last year, when NASA launched the uncrewed Orion on a test mission to space in November, sending the ship around the Moon and back on a 1.4-million-mile journey that lasted 25 and a half days. The goal of that mission was to test the new Artemis rocket and spacecraft ahead of a crewed flight.

NASA associate administrator Robert D. Cabana said after the Orion splashed down safely in December that the spacecraft performed "flawlessly" despite a few minor glitches. Officials had scuttled the scheduled launch of Artemis I several times over technical problems, including a hydrogen leak, as well as severe weather.

With the test flight finally under Orion's belt and its first crew named, space program officials are preparing for the second phase of Artemis, which is scheduled to take place in 2024. The four astronauts will embark on a roughly 10-day mission around the Moon and back without landing on the lunar surface.

President Biden called the crew members to offer his thanks and tell them he was proud of the mission they were set to embark on.

"The world just is, just holds their breath when things like this happen," Biden said. "And I know you know it, but the work you're doing is going to inspire countless people around our country and the world."

50 years since the last Apollo astronauts went to the moon, NASA is finally going back

The final phase of the Artemis project, Artemis III, will put astronauts on the Moon once again — but no sooner than 2025 . The last time NASA astronauts walked on the Moon was during the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.

Officials say Artemis III also will land the first woman and the first person of color on the lunar surface.

As part of the program, NASA hopes to build a base camp on the Moon that would include a lunar cabin, a rover and a mobile home and allow astronauts to stay there for up to two months at a time to conduct future research.

According to NASA's Office of Inspector General, each Orion spaceflight will cost more than $4 billion , and the overall cost of the Artemis program through the 2025 fiscal year will reach $93 billion.

A series of other countries have signed onto an agreement known as the Artemis Accords with NASA that lays out shared principles underpinning future space exploration, including Australia, Japan, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

The speed of light is torturously slow, and these 3 simple animations by a scientist at NASA prove it

• The speed of light in a vacuum is about 186,282 miles per second (299,792 kilometers per second).
• A scientist at NASA animated how long it takes light to travel around Earth, as well as between the planet, its moon, and Mars.
• The physics animations show just how fast (and slow) the speed limit of the universe can be.

A series of new animations by a NASA scientist show just how zippy — and also how torturously slow — the speed of light can be.

Light speed is the fastest that any material object can travel through space. That is, of course, barring the existence of theoretical shortcuts in the fabric of space called wormholes (and the ability to go through them without being destroyed).

In a perfectly empty vacuum, a particle of light, which is called a photon, can travel 186,282 miles per second (299,792 kilometers per second), or about 670.6 million mph (1.079 billion kilometers per hour).

This is incredibly fast. However, light speed can be frustratingly slow if you're trying to communicate with or reach other planets, especially any worlds beyond our solar system.

Read more : Astronomers found a 'cold super-Earth' less than 6 light-years away — and it may be the first rocky planet we'll photograph beyond the solar system

To depict the speed limit of the cosmos in a way anyone could understand, James O'Donoghue , a planetary scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, took it upon himself to animate it.

"My animations were made to show as instantly as possible the whole context of what I'm trying to convey," O'Donoghue told Business Insider via Twitter . "When I revised for my exams, I used to draw complex concepts out by hand just to truly understand, so that's what I'm doing here."

O'Donoghue said he only recently learned how to create these animations — his first were for a NASA news release about Saturn's vanishing rings . After that, he moved on to animating other difficult-to-grasp space concepts, including a video illustrating the rotation speeds and sizes of the planets. He said that one "garnered millions of views" when he posted it on Twitter .

O'Donoghue's latest effort looks at three different light-speed scenarios to convey how fast (and how painfully slow) photons can be.

How fast light travels relative to Earth

One of O'Donoghue's first animations shows how fast light moves in relation to Earth.

Earth is 24,901 miles around at its center. If our world had no atmosphere (air refracts and slows down light a little bit), a photon skimming along its surface could lap the equator nearly 7.5 times every second.

In this depiction , the speed of light seems pretty fast — though the movie also shows how finite it is.

How fast light travels between Earth and the moon

A second animation by O'Donoghue takes a big step back from Earth to include the moon.

Related stories

On average, there is about 238,855 miles (384,400 kilometers) of distance between our planet and its large natural satellite.

This means all moonlight we see is 1.255 seconds old, and a round-trip between the Earth and moon at light speed takes about 2.51 seconds.

This timing is growing every day, however, as the moon is drifting farther from Earth at a rate of about 1.5 inches (3.8 centimeters) per year. (The moon is constantly sapping Earth's rotational energy via ocean tides , boosting its orbit to a greater and greater distance.)

How fast light travels between Earth and Mars

O'Donoghue's third speed-of-light animation illustrates the challenge that many planetary scientists deal with on a daily basis.

When NASA tries to talk to or download data from a spacecraft, such as the InSight probe on Mars , it can do so only at the speed of light. This is much too slow to operate a spacecraft in "live mode" as you would a remote-controlled car. So, commands must be carefully thought out, prepackaged, and aimed at the precise location in space at the precise time so that they don't miss their target.

Read more : NASA can hear the 'haunting' sound of dust devils tearing across Mars with its new $830 million lander

The fastest a conversation could ever happen between Earth and Mars is when the planets are at their nearest point to one another, an event called closest approach that happens once roughly every two years. On average, that best-case-scenario distance is about 33.9 million miles (54.6 million kilometers).

As that 60-second clip of O'Donoghue's full movie on YouTube shows, light takes 3 minutes 2 seconds to travel between Earth and Mars at closest approach. That's six minutes and four seconds for a light-speed round-trip.

But on average, Mars is about 158 million miles from Earth — so the average round-trip communication takes about 28 minutes and 12 seconds.

The speed of light gets more depressing the farther you go

The hurdle of light's finite speed gets even more challenging for spacecraft such as New Horizons, which is now more than 4 billion miles from Earth , and the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft, each of which have reached the space between stars .

The situation gets downright depressing when you start looking outside the solar system. The closest-known exoplanet , called Proxima b, is about 4.2 light-years away from us (a distance of about 24.7 trillion miles or 39.7 trillion kilometers).

However, the fastest any spacecraft has ever gone is NASA's Parker Solar Probe at about 213,200 mph ; at that speed, it'd take 13,211 years to reach Proxima b.

A Russian-American billionaire's Breakthrough Starshot project envisions a way to address this speed problem. The multidecade plan is to build and fly tiny "nanocraft" past such exoplanets via ultrapowerful laser blasts , ideally at a planned cruise velocity of 20% of the speed of light. Yet the entire concept is still theoretical, may end up not working, and would operate at a fraction of light-speed.

Space is impossibly vast. Although the universe is about 13.77 billion years old, its edge is about 45.34 billion light-years away in any direction and is increasing due to expansion .

That's far too big to illustrate in a simple animation. One illustration comes close, though: this image created by musician Pablo Carlos Budassi , which combines logarithmic maps of the universe from Princeton and images from NASA to capture it all in one picture.

This story has been updated.

Watch: What humans will look like on Mars

• Main content

How far is the moon from Earth?

Answering the question "how far is the moon from Earth?", can change depending on when you ask it.

• Shortest distance
• Greatest distance
• Travel time
• Drifting away

Additional Resources

It's the brightest object in our night sky, but how far is the moon from Earth?

The moon 's distance from Earth affects the strength of ocean tides and the appearance of solar eclipses in our skies.

The average distance between the blue planet and its only natural satellite is about 238,855 miles (384,400 kilometers), according to NASA . 

The moon does not orbit Earth in a perfect circle, so there are places along its trip when it is either closer or farther away from our planet than this average distance. 

Shortest distance between the moon and Earth: Perigee

When the moon reaches its shortest distance to Earth — known as perigee — it is about 226,000 miles (363,300 km) away. 

If perigee coincides with a full moon phase, this is generally called a supermoon . The term is not a scientific one, but it is used by the skywatching community when the full moon appears within 90% of perigee. 

Supermoons appear roughly 17% bigger and 30% brighter than the faintest moon of the year. Since the moon's gravity exerts a pulling force on Earth's oceans to produce tides, the moon's closer proximity to Earth around perigee can also trigger higher-than-usual tides. 

Greatest distance between the moon and Earth: Apogee

When the moon is at its farthest distance from Earth, known as apogee, it is about 251,000 miles (405,500 km) from our planet. One of the clearest natural visuals for apogee are annular, or "ring of fire," solar eclipses . 

A remarkable quality of solar eclipses is the serendipity of their existence. For the next 600 million years , the moon's proximity to Earth will be about 400 times greater than the sun's distance to Earth. Since the star's diameter is also approximately 400 times greater than that of the moon, the disks of both objects tend to match almost perfectly during solar eclipses. This produces moments of totality when just the solar corona peeks out from behind the moon. 

Related: Solar eclipses 2023: When, where & how to see them

But if the new moon phase that produces solar eclipses coincides with apogee, the moon's longer distance from Earth means that the lunar disk will appear much smaller in the sky. While still spectacular, annular solar eclipses do not completely block out the sun, Instead, they leave a ring of the solar disk visible to spectators.

How long does it take to get to the moon?

A range of factors determines how long it takes to reach the moon. Human missions, for instance, tend to take longer than passenger-free satellites. Whether or not an object stops at the moon or just zips by also comes into play.

The USSR launched the first mission to the moon,  Luna 1 , in 1959. With no propulsion system, the sphere-shaped satellite was hurled into space and took only 34 flight hours to make the trip. After its flyby, the satellite went into orbit around the sun, between the orbits of Earth and Mars . This remains one of the fastest trips to the moon.

In 2003, the European Space Agency launched SMART-1, the first successful European spacecraft to the moon. Rather than travel a direct path, SMART-1 spiraled around Earth to reach its satellite, arriving more than a year after launch. Instead of propellant, SMART-1 made the first use of an ion engine, in combination with gravity assist maneuvers, to reach the moon making it extremely fuel efficient. The extended path provided significant insight into the Earth-moon system

– How big is the moon?

– How was the moon formed?

– What is a blood moon?

– What is a Blue Moon?

"Operating SMART-1 has been an extremely complex but rewarding task," Octavio Camino-Ramos, ESA SMART-1 Spacecraft Operations Manager said in a  statement . "The long spiraling trajectory around Earth to test solar electric propulsion (a low-thrust approach), the long exposure to radiation, the strong perturbations of the gravity fields of the Earth-moon system and then the reaching of a lunar orbit optimized for the scientific investigations, have allowed us to gain valuable expertise in navigation techniques for low-thrust propulsion." He called the findings "a remarkable benchmark for the future."

NASA sent eight crewed Apollo missions to the moon, six of which landed successfully. (Apollo 8 was the first mission to orbit another body and Apollo 13's infamous disaster resulted in a journey around the moon rather than a landing on its surface.) Each spent about three days traveling through space.

Apollo 8  took 69 hours and 8 minutes to enter orbit around the moon.  Apollo 11 , which placed the first humans on the moon, took 75 hours and 56 minutes to enter orbit around the moon. Long before they entered orbit, however, both spacecraft entered the moon's sphere of influence, a region 33,823 nautical miles (62,630 km) from the moon. For Apollo 11, this occurred after 61 hours and 56 minutes, while for Apollo 8 it took only 55 hours 40 minutes.

But the quickest trip to the moon was the  New Horizons  probe, which zipped past the moon in just 8 hours 35 minutes. The spacecraft didn't even slow down or approach lunar orbit but instead flew by on its way to Pluto .

The moon is getting further away

The moon was once much closer to Earth. During the infancy of the solar system just as planets were finalizing their formation , a protoplanetary Earth collided with a Mars-sized object that may have formed farther away from the sun. Known as Theia , its impact produced the material that would eventually coalesce to form the moon. 

The distance between the Earth and the moon grew as time passed. Currently, the moon drifts away from our planet at a rate of approximately 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) a year, roughly the same rate at which your fingernails grow !

Explore the distance to the moon in more detail with this article from Royal Museums Greenwich . Learn how to measure the distance to the moon using a lunar eclipse or a parallax with this feature from Universe Today . Continue exploring moon to Earth distance measurements with the educational website Earth How .

If you're looking to take the best photos of the moon that you can, our  how to photograph the moon  guide is full of expert tips on techniques, times and tools to help you start taking the most impressive lunar photos you can. Our  best cameras for astrophotography  and  best lenses for astrophotography  can also help you take the best moon images you can, no matter your skill level.

Fancy taking a more in-depth moonlit tour of our rocky companion? Our  ultimate guide to observing the moon  will help you plan your next skywatching venture whether it be exploring the lunar seas, mountainous terrain, or the many craters that blanket the landscape. You can also see where astronauts, rovers and landers have ventured with our  Apollo landing sites observing guide . 

Bibliography

Ahrens, Caitlin. " Origin of the Moon, Impactor Theory ." Encyclopedia of Lunar Science (2021). 

Cano, Erick J., Zachary D. Sharp, and Charles K. Shearer. " Distinct oxygen isotope compositions of the Earth and Moon ." Nature Geoscience 13.4 (2020): 270-274. 

Jones, Andrea, et al. " Overview | Inside & Out – Moon: NASA Science." Public Engagement  Team at NASA Goddard's Solar System Exploration Division. Accessed 31 January 2022.

Jones, Andrea, et al. " Eclipses | Moon in Motion ." Public Engagement Team at NASA Goddard's Solar System Exploration Division. Accessed 31 January 2022.

Jones, Andrea, et al. " Supermoons | Moon in Motion ." Public Engagement Team at NASA Goddard's Solar System Exploration Division. Accessed 31 January 2022.

Jones, Andrea, et al. " Moon Phases | Moon in Motion ." Public Engagement Team at NASA Goddard's Solar System Exploration Division. Accessed 31 January 2022.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

Get the Space.com Newsletter

Breaking space news, the latest updates on rocket launches, skywatching events and more!

China to launch sample-return mission to the moon's far side on May 3

Satellites watch as 4th global coral bleaching event unfolds (image)

How to watch Boeing's 1st Starliner astronaut launch webcasts live online

Most Popular

• 2 The highest observatory on Earth sits atop Chile's Andes Mountains — and it's finally open
• 3 Satellite operator SES acquiring Intelsat in $3.1 billion deal
• 4 Einstein Probe X-ray telescope releases 1st images taken with 'lobster vision'
• 5 'We are ready:' New NASA documentary looks ahead to Artemis 2 moon mission (video)

Bouncing Signals Off The Moon

One of the great things about ham radio is that isn’t just one hobby. Some people like to chit chat, some like to work foreign countries, some prepare for emergencies, and there are several space-related activities. There are hundreds of different kinds of activities to choose from. Just one is moonbounce, and [Ham Radio DX] decided to replicate a feat many hams have done over the years: communicate with someone far away by bouncing signals from the moon .

The set up is pretty sophisticated but not as bad as you might imagine. You can see that they spend a lot of time getting the equipment aligned. A known reference point helps them set the position of the antenna. A GPS keeps both stations in sync for frequency and time.

Some of the gear is repurposed commercial gear. A standard transceiver generates the signal, but not at 10 GHz. A transverter and a 60W amplifier put out a relatively strong signal at 10 GHz.

As far as we know, the first proposal for bouncing a signal off the moon came back in 1940. The military and a Hungarian group were the first to pull it off in early 1946. Remember, with no satellites, having a direct teletype link between Pearl Harbor and Washington DC was an amazing achievement.

Ham radio operators starting using moon bounce (sometimes called Earth Moon Earth or EME) back in 1953. The round trip propagation time is about 2.5 seconds or so. In this case the stations used WSJT , a computer program made for weak signal work.

The Hungarian effort back in the 40s was pretty interesting . 10 GHz is pretty high frequency. But there are always X-rays .

28 thoughts on “ Bouncing Signals Off The Moon ”

“10 GHz is pretty high frequency.”

s/pretty/super/

I’m feeling pedantic today.

So where does PHF start, then?

I think its somewhere below the RHF (ridiculously high frequency) range.

Prepare for ludicrous frequency!

They’ve gone to Plaid High Frequency!

It is high but still quite accessible. There is a lot of surplus equipment for this band, although that 60W amplifier will not have been cheap…

I didn’t see it in this table: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_frequency#Frequency_bands but perhaps it’s the one past “tremendously high frequency” (which I didn’t know was a thing until today).

3rd up from the bottom in the table. 3–30 GHz 100–10 mm Super high frequency SHF S, C, X, Ku, K, Ka Super High Frequency.

I’m shocked at how incomplete this article is. You don’t even mention the helium filled radio balloons high above the flat-Earth that store the entire RF spectrum for a short while and rebroadcast it so that it matches the round-trip reflection times that would be part of the orbiting moon – if not for the deep state conspiracy theory to keep the truth from all humanity. Shoddy reporting IMO.

Are those what cause LDEs, when they malfunction? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_delayed_echo

Hoax! Those balloons would float off forever, if they weren’t tethered. And nobody has ever found those tethers. Besides: how can you call it ‘deep’ state, while the Earth is flat? It’s ‘waf’ state. ‘widened-and-flattened’.

It’s “The Urban Legion” I tell ya. 😉 (um…actually that’s the title of a book by Dave Agans)

And by the way, Were expecting an acceptance speech, to all our fellow trolls and trolletts.

You sir win the troll of the year trophy… And the year isn’t even over! 😂👍💯

Excellent piece, i’m glad that someone has covered EME on Hackaday. It’s arguably the pinnacle of amateur radio achievement, to bounce your signal off the moon and make 2-way contact.

HAM was why I got into electronics. Dad and other relatives were quite into it and started teaching me electronics about 2nd grade for what that was worth, it was all tubes and point to point wiring then, and got my interest by way of an electrifying experience trying to plug a reel to reel recorder into an extension cord. Scared and pissed me off such that had to learn and defeat this electrickery stuff. I liked the electronics but Ham was lacking as all you can do is communicate with people far away that talk strange. Uncle’s ham shack was a blast though… I wanted that teletype! Was present to see lots of EME and MARS being actively used but just wasn’t enough one COULD DO WITH IT other than communicate with MORE strange sounding people, and this is fun?. But did get to know electronics in depth before getting out of high school. Thankfully finally got my hands on an SPC 16/60 magnetic core computer… it needs no strange person on the other end so I was hyped and stuck with digital long time. But everything was getting tiny…

Do get yourself a binocular microscope… you need as of 15 yrs ago. Best of luck! Wonderful hobby, great career.

BEEF is the reason why I got into electronics. I didn’t want to be a cattle rancher like my Dad. B^)

The reason I got into electronics when I was a kid was a family friend who had polio designed and built his 80 meter transmitter. Friends had constructed a half wave dipole antenna with telephone pole end supports and connected the farm’s water well as a ground. He could reliably key the mic, say CQ CQ CQ, W0QQT, unkey the mic and hear the signal on his receiver delayed by the distance as the signal went fully around the earth. I still think that is pretty cool. And I think it was really cool that a disabled person could study, learn, design and build this system literally from scratch, individual parts ordered and purchased through the snail mail (actually they used to do that before the internet).

Being able to reflect a signal off the 90% absorptive basalt on the moon and receive it on Earth is also one of these. It’s a shame that with the times we’ve visited the moon that we didn’t put up a solar powered Ham transponder there. Even a 1 watt transponder would tremendously increase the ease of moonbounce.

Here, here. Or dump a load of mylar confetti on the moon cut to a half wavelength of your favorite band for a passive reflector.

Quote: Ham radio operators starting using moon bounce (sometimes called Earth Moon Earth or EME) back in 1953. The round trip propagation time is about 2.5 seconds or so. In this case the stations used WSJT, a computer program made for weak signal work.

That paragraph needs to be rewritten. By running then and now together, it seems to suggest that hams were using WSJT back in 1953, when the number of computers in the world was probably in the double-digits.

Timing is very important in weak-signal communication using software. I assume that WSJT takes that into account in EME communication.

“10 GHz is [a] pretty high frequency.”

10 GHz is in the “Super High Frequency” (SHF) X-Band. The X-Band frequency range is specified by the IEEE as 8.0–12.0 GHz. Ref:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_band

But IMO that’s not so high. How about 3 THz in the 300 GHz – 3 THz “Tremendously High Frequency” (THF) band! The THF band is so high in frequency it doesn’t even have an IEEE letter designation (yet). Now that’s what I call “pretty high”. Ref:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terahertz_radiation

Time to let go of the lettered bands, only ever intended to confuse spies; result, it confuses EVERYBODY! OK to use frequency. —de WA6DZS

12AU76L6GC – Now that IS really kewl!

de KC1CCG — Isn’t moon bounce radar? which is contrary to the rules. A shame since radar would be quite interesting with components available now. If only the operator of the transmitter hears the return (ie not a QSO)….isn’t it radar?

My father, Bill Duval K5UGM did moon bounce. When I was 13 years old we spent all weekend constructing the dish and using his transmitter we succeeded, then subsequently knocked out every TV in the neighborhood. He died in 2006 and I miss him every day. Only recently have I tried to document his accomplishments. He was an amazing man and one hell of a ham radio operator.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please be kind and respectful to help make the comments section excellent. ( Comment Policy )

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Never miss a hack

If you missed it.

VAR Is Ruining Football, And Tech Is Ruining Sport

Mining And Refining: Uranium And Plutonium

Programming Ada: First Steps On The Desktop

The Hunt For MH370 Goes On With Barnacles As A Lead

MXM: Powerful, Misused, Hackable

Our columns.

FLOSS Weekly Episode 781: Resistant To The Wrath Of God

Programming ada: packages and command line applications.

Supercon 2023: Jose Angel Torres On Building A Junkyard Secure Phone

2024 Home Sweet Home Automation: The Winners Are In

Upgrade Your Test Probes

By using our website and services, you expressly agree to the placement of our performance, functionality and advertising cookies. Learn more

• Subscriber Services
• For Authors
• Publications
• Archaeology
• Art & Architecture
• Bilingual dictionaries
• Classical studies
• Encyclopedias
• English Dictionaries and Thesauri
• Language reference
• Linguistics
• Media studies
• Medicine and health
• Names studies
• Performing arts
• Science and technology
• Social sciences
• Society and culture
• Overview Pages
• Subject Reference
• English Dictionaries
• Bilingual Dictionaries

Recently viewed (0)

• Save Search
• Share This Facebook LinkedIn Twitter

Related Content

More like this.

Show all results sharing these subjects:

• Astronomy and Cosmology

round-trip light time

Quick reference.

The elapsed time taken by a signal travelling from the Earth to a spacecraft or other celestial body, then immediately transmitted or reflected back to the original transmission point. This is about equal to twice the one-way light time, but it varies because the motions of the Earth and space objects create different travelling times each way. RTLT to the Sun is about 17 minutes, and it was about 23 hours to the Voyager 1 probe in October 2001.

From:   round-trip light time   in  A Dictionary of Space Exploration »

Subjects: Science and technology — Astronomy and Cosmology

Related content in Oxford Reference

Reference entries.

View all related items in Oxford Reference »

Search for: 'round-trip light time' in Oxford Reference »

• Oxford University Press

PRINTED FROM OXFORD REFERENCE (www.oxfordreference.com). (c) Copyright Oxford University Press, 2023. All Rights Reserved. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a PDF of a single entry from a reference work in OR for personal use (for details see Privacy Policy and Legal Notice ).

date: 02 May 2024

• Cookie Policy
• Privacy Policy
• Legal Notice
• Accessibility
• [66.249.64.20|185.80.151.41]
• 185.80.151.41

Character limit 500 /500

Why does NASA want a time zone on the moon?

NASA has been tasked with determining a standard time zone for the moon, but it’s more complicated than you might think.

The United States government has tasked its space agency, NASA, with establishing a standard time zone for the moon, which will be known as Coordinated Lunar Time (CLT).

In a memo issued on April 2, the US Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) stated: “Federal agencies will develop celestial time standardisation with an initial focus on the lunar surface and missions operating in Cislunar space [the area within the moon’s orbit], with sufficient traceability to support missions to other celestial bodies.” “Traceability” means that CLT can be kept in sync with time zones on Earth.

Keep reading

Russia’s angara a5 rocket blasts off into space after two aborted launches, photos: mexico, us, canada mesmerised by rare total solar eclipse, moment total solar eclipse occurs in north america, millions across north america await total solar eclipse.

The memo outlined the following features for the new CLT:

• Traceability to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC – a compromise for both English and French speakers);
• Accuracy sufficient to support precision navigation and science;
• Resilience to loss of contact with Earth (meaning CLT can operate independently of Earth); and
• Scalability to space environments beyond the Earth-moon system (meaning other space stations beyond the moon would be able to use CLT as well).

Don’t expect your favourite time zone and calendar apps to have CLT as an option yet; NASA has until the end of 2026 to establish CLT.

Why does the moon need its own time zone?

In layman’s terms, we need a reliable “lunar time” earth-syncing system because lower gravity on the moon causes time to move slightly faster there than on Earth – by just 58.7 microseconds (there are 1 million microseconds in a single second) faster within every 24 Earth hours.

This is not science fiction, even though it is a main feature of Hollywood blockbusters such as Interstellar. Known as “gravitational time dilation”, the passage of time is impacted by gravity.

Although small, these time discrepancies can cause issues with syncing satellites and space stations in lunar orbit.

An unnamed OSTP official told Reuters: “Imagine if the world wasn’t syncing their clocks to the same time – how disruptive that might be and how challenging everyday things become.”

How would we tell time on the moon?

Earth uses UTC or Coordinated Universal Time to sync time zones around the world. UTC is determined by more than 400 atomic clocks that are maintained in national “time laboratories” in about 30 countries around the world. An atomic clock uses the vibrations of atoms to achieve extreme precision in keeping track of time.

Similar atomic clocks would be placed on the moon to get an accurate time reading.

Known as Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT), this precision-timing system allows communications systems to measure and keep accurate timing. The Ordnance Survey, the British organisation that has been producing maps since 1791, explains that PNT has three core elements:

• Positioning – the ability to precisely determine one’s location and orientation, predominantly two dimensionally on a printed map, although three-dimensional orientation can be determined when required.
• Navigation – the ability to determine both the current and desired position (either relative or absolute), and apply corrections to course, orientation and speed to reach a desired position from anywhere in the world, from sub-surface (below the Earth’s surface) to surface, and from surface to space.
• Timing – the ability to maintain accurate and precise time from anywhere in the world.

Does NASA have plans for time zones in other parts of outer space?

Although there has been no mention of time zones on other planets, in 2019, NASA’s Deep Space Atomic Clock (DSAC) mission tested an atomic clock to improve spacecraft navigation in deep space. The DSAC mission, on SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket, was launched on June 22, 2019. The rocket tested the atomic clock in Earth’s orbit for one year.

Typically, spacecraft keep accurate time by bouncing signals to atomic clocks on Earth and then the signal is sent back to the spacecraft. In this mission, the on-board atomic clock was tested to keep precise time without relying on this two-way communication between the spacecraft and the atomic clocks on Earth. The accuracy of the timing is tied to getting accurate positioning, while helping the spacecraft reach the intended location in space successfully.

As NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the centre for robotic exploration of the solar system, explains: “A two-way system that sends a signal from Earth to a spacecraft, back to Earth and then to the spacecraft again would take an average of 40 minutes. Imagine if the GPS on your phone took 40 minutes to calculate your position. You might miss your turn or be several exits down the highway before it caught up with you. If humans travel to the Red Planet [Mars], it would be better if the system was one-way, allowing the explorers to immediately determine their current position rather than waiting for that information to come back from Earth.”

The mission successfully ended in 2021, with the on-board atomic clock maintaining the correct timing and navigational positioning.

What time is it on the moon? We may soon know, thanks to NASA project

• Search Search

Scientists are looking to establish a time zone on the moon. A Northeastern physicist explains why time functions slightly differently on the moon.

• Copy Link Link Copied!

From sundials and water clocks to modern atomic timekeeping, methods for telling time on Earth — to mark the divide between night and day, month to year, etc. — have evolved over thousands of years. 

Now, scientists are bringing their technological knowhow to the moon in order to establish time standards there and elsewhere in space. 

The White House has directed NASA “to establish time standards at and around celestial bodies other than Earth,” instructing the agency to “develop celestial time standardization with an initial focus on the lunar surface” by December 2026.

Arun Bansil , university distinguished professor of physics at Northeastern, says that time functions slightly differently on the moon because the gravitational force is weaker there than on Earth.

Northeastern Global News spoke to Bansil to learn more about the science behind the White House’s latest project. His comments have been edited for brevity and clarity. 

Does time behave differently on the moon? What about on other planets?

This is a fascinating question. It may seem bizarre that time fundamentally does not behave the same way on Earth, moon and other parts of the solar system. Two perfectly synchronized clocks will in principle stay synchronized on Earth. But, if we take one of these clocks to the moon, they will no longer remain synchronized. The clock on the moon will gain about 58 microseconds every 24 hours. The clocks are not defective — the time itself runs faster on the moon. This translates into an astronaut living on the moon with a 2-second shorter lifespan compared to Earth, which may not sound like much, but uncertainties of microseconds would wreak havoc in the world of electronic communications between satellites and space stations.

Why does time behave differently on Earth and moon?

The behavior of time is a very tactile, real-world consequence of the great theory of relativity of Einstein. Before Einstein, space and time were considered independent entities, and a second represented the same amount of time elapsing anywhere in the universe. Einstein’s deep insight into the workings of nature changed this classical view of time through his discovery of two revolutionary theories: the Special Theory of Relativity and the General Theory of Relatively.

The Special Theory of Relativity tells us that moving clocks progressively slow down with increasing speed and almost come to a standstill as we approach the speed of light. This effect is difficult to experience in daily life because we only encounter speeds that are minuscule compared to the speed of light, which is 186,000 miles per second. In the atomic world, however, where the particles run around at speeds comparable to the speed of light, large relativistic effects are seen routinely.

The General Theory of Relativity offers another mechanism for the slowing down of time — technically referred to as gravitational time dilation. Gravity can bend space and with it slow down time itself by dilating or stretching the fabric of time. Since larger astronomical objects are typically heavier, the gravity force around them is also greater and so is the associated slowing down of the time. For example, the gravity force on the moon is smaller than on Earth, which results in clocks on Earth running slower than on the moon. The clocks on Jupiter will run even more slowly than on the Earth due the larger mass of Jupiter.

Featured Stories

Award-winning student film serves as ‘homage’ to friendship and Northeastern’s graduating students

Every mortarboard tells a story. Northeastern graduates prepare for commencement by showcasing their individuality and creativity

The untold story of how two Northeastern professors analyzed moon rocks for NASA a half-century ago

New virtual reality games designed by Northeastern graduate students unveiled at showcase on Oakland campus

The actual differences in the behavior of clocks will involve combined effects of gravity and speed and these effects will differ around various astronomical objects and in different parts of the solar system.

How is time synchronized in different parts of Earth and between Earth and moon?  

It is important that the time across the globe be kept highly synchronized to avoid chaos in financial markets and electronic communications more generally. For this purpose, the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on Earth is maintained through a series of more than 400 highly accurate, networked atomic clocks spread over various parts of the world. The most advanced atomic clocks are so precise as to not lose even a second over the age of the universe. As the activity between Earth and moon is growing, it makes sense to develop an accurate standard time zone for the moon, which could be accomplished by placing a network of atomic clocks on the surface of the moon.

Science & Technology

Recent Stories

We have completed maintenance on Astronomy.com and action may be required on your account. Learn More

• Login/Register
• Solar System
• Exotic Objects
• Upcoming Events
• Deep-Sky Objects
• Observing Basics
• Telescopes and Equipment
• Astrophotography
• Space Exploration
• Human Spaceflight
• Robotic Spaceflight
• The Magazine

2024 Full Moon calendar: Dates, times, types, and names

The phenomenon of a Full Moon arises when our planet, Earth, is precisely sandwiched between the Sun and the Moon. This alignment ensures the entire side of the Moon that faces us gleams under sunlight. And thanks to the Moon’s orbit around Earth, the angle of sunlight hitting the lunar surface and being reflected back to our planet changes, giving birth to varied lunar phases.

We’ll update this article multiple times each week with the latest moonrise, moonset, Full Moon schedule, and some of what you can see in the sky each week.

The Full Moon in April 2024 was at 7:49 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 23, and is called the Pink Moon.

The Full Moon in May 2024 is the Flower Moon and that will happen at 9:53 a.m. on Thursday, May 23.

Here’s the complete list of Full Moons this year and their traditional names.

2024 Full Moon schedule and names of each

(all times Eastern)

• Jan. 25 — 12:54 p.m. — Wolf Moon 🐺
• Feb. 24 —7:30 a.m. — Snow Moon ❄️
• March 25 — 3 a.m. — Worm Moon 🪱
• April 23 — 7:49 p.m. — Pink Moon 🎀
• May 23 — 9:53 a.m. — Flower Moon 🌷
• June 21 — 9:08 p.m. — Strawberry Moon 🍓
• July 21 — 6:17 a.m. — Buck Moon 🦌
• Aug. 19 — 2:26 p.m. — Sturgeon Moon 🐟
• Sept. 17 — 10:34 p.m. — Corn Moon 🌽
• Oct. 17 — 7:26 a.m. — Hunter’s Moon 🏹
• Nov. 15 — 4:28 p.m. — Beaver Moon 🦫
• Dec. 15 — 4:02 a.m. — Cold Moon 🥶

The phases of the Moon in May 2024

The images below show the day-by-day phases of the Moon this month. The Full Moon in May is at 9:53 a.m. ET on Thursday, May 23, and is called the Flower Moon.

The moonrise and moonset schedule this week

The following is adapted from Alison Klesman’s The Sky This Week article, which you can find here.

*Times for sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset are given in local time from 40° N 90° W. The Moon’s illumination is given at 12 P.M. local time from the same location.

Wednesday, May 1 The Moon reaches Last Quarter at 7:27 A.M. EDT this morning. This lunar phase occurs when the Moon rises after midnight and lingers in the early-morning sky, offering early risers a chance to view our satellite before and after sunrise (though take extreme care when observing through optics after the Sun clears the horizon). Clearly visible now is the western portion of the nearside, dominated by Mare Imbrium and Oceanus Procellarum. Sunrise: 5:59 A.M. Sunset: 7:56 P.M. Moonrise: 2:36 A.M. Moonset: 12:20 P.M. Moon Phase: Waning crescent (48%)

Thursday, May 2

Sunrise: 5:58 A.M. Sunset: 7:56 P.M. Moonrise: 3:09 A.M. Moonset: 1:36 P.M.    Moon Phase: Waning crescent (36%)

Friday, May 3 Sunrise: 5:57 A.M. Sunset: 7:57 P.M. Moonrise: 3:37 A.M. Moonset: 2:50 P.M. Moon Phase: Waning crescent (26%)

The phases of the Moon

The phases of the Moon are: New Moon, waxing crescent, First Quarter, waxing gibbous, Full Moon, waning gibbous, Last Quarter, and waning crescent. A cycle starting from one Full Moon to its next counterpart, termed the synodic month or lunar month, lasts about 29.5 days.

Though a Full Moon only occurs during the exact moment when Earth, Moon, and Sun form a perfect alignment, to our eyes, the Moon seems Full for around three days.

Different names for different types of Full Moon

There are a wide variety of specialized names used to identify distinct types or timings of Full Moons. These names primarily trace back to a blend of cultural, agricultural, and natural observations about the Moon, aimed at allowing humans to not only predict seasonal changes, but also track the passage of time. 

For instance, almost every month’s Full Moon boasts a name sourced from Native American, Colonial American, or other North American traditions, with their titles mirroring seasonal shifts and nature’s events.

Wolf Moon (January) : Inspired by the cries of hungry wolves.

Snow Moon (February) : A nod to the month’s often heavy snowfall.

Worm Moon (March) : Named after the earthworms that signal thawing grounds.

Pink Moon (April) : In honor of the blossoming pink wildflowers.

Flower Moon (May) : Celebrating the bloom of flowers.

Strawberry Moon (June) : Marks the prime strawberry harvest season.

Buck Moon (July) : Recognizing the new antlers on bucks.

Sturgeon Moon (August) : Named after the abundant sturgeon fish.

Corn Moon (September) : Signifying the corn harvesting period.

Hunter’s Moon (October) : Commemorating the hunting season preceding winter.

Beaver Moon (November) : Reflects the time when beavers are busy building their winter dams.

Cold Moon (December) : Evocative of winter’s chill.

In addition, there are a few additional names for Full Moons that commonly make their way into public conversations and news.

What is a Blue Moon? When’s the next one?

Everything you need to know about the Moon

Moon illusion: No, our satellite is not really bigger when on the horizon

High-end telescopes: Our top picks for those ready to splurge

The best telescopes under $1,000

‘Safety is our top priority’: NASA delays Artemis Mission until 2025

Ask Astro: Why does the Moon disappear during New Moon?

Super Moon : This term is reserved for a Full Moon that aligns with the lunar perigee, which is the Moon’s nearest point to Earth in its orbit. This proximity renders the Full Moon unusually large and luminous. For a Full Moon to earn the Super Moon tag, it should be within approximately 90 percent of its closest distance to Earth.

Blue Moon : A Blue Moon is the second Full Moon in a month that experiences two Full Moons. This phenomenon graces our skies roughly every 2.7 years. Though the term suggests a color, Blue Moons aren’t truly blue. Very occasionally, atmospheric conditions such as recent volcanic eruptions might lend the Moon a slightly blueish tint, but this hue isn’t tied to the term.

Harvest Moon : Occurring closest to the autumnal equinox, typically in September, the Harvest Moon is often renowned for a distinct orange tint it might display. This Full Moon rises close to sunset and sets near sunrise, providing extended hours of bright moonlight. Historically, this was invaluable to farmers gathering their produce.

Common questions about Full Moons

What is the difference between a Full Moon and a New Moon? A Full Moon is witnessed when Earth lies between the Sun and the Moon, making the entire Moon’s face visible. Conversely, during a New Moon, the Moon lies between Earth and the Sun, shrouding its Earth-facing side in darkness.

How does the Full Moon influence tides? The Moon’s gravitational tug causes Earth’s waters to bulge, birthing tides. During both Full and New Moons, the Sun, Earth, and Moon are in alignment, generating “spring tides.” These tides can swing exceptionally high or low due to the combined gravitational influences of the Sun and Moon.

Do Full Moons have an impact on human behavior? While numerous tales suggest Full Moons stir human behavior, causing increased restlessness or even lunacy, rigorous scientific analyses have largely debunked these tales.

Full Moons, in their myriad forms, stand testament to humanity’s enduring captivation with the cosmos. They evoke not just our celestial connection but also tether us to Earth’s rhythms. Whether you’re an avid stargazer or an occasional night sky admirer, Full Moons invariably call for our attention, inviting both introspection and marvel.

Here are the dates for all the lunar phases in 2024:

How do you find a black hole? An astronomer explains the thrilling hunt

The science behind the ‘spiders’ on Mars and the Inca City

Planets on parade: This Week in Astronomy with Dave Eicher

Sky This Month: May 2024

The Milky Way, to ancient Egyptians, was probably mixed Nuts

The reasons why numbers go on forever

Celestron NexStar Evolution 8HD telescope, reviewed

Astronomy Magazine Annual Index

How to see the next 20 years of eclipses, including the eclipse of a lifetime

• India Today
• Business Today
• Reader’s Digest
• Harper's Bazaar
• Brides Today
• Cosmopolitan
• Aaj Tak Campus
• India Today Hindi

China set to launch spacecraft on round trip to the Moon, return with lunar soil

This will be the first of three missions designed to set the stage for a manned lunar landing and the establishment of a base at the moon's south pole by 2030..

Listen to Story

• The upcoming mission targets the moon's far side
• It is referred to as its "hidden" side due to its permanent orientation away from Earth
• The mission's significance extends beyond technological prowess

China is set to launch the Chang'e-6 mission, a robotic spacecraft aimed at collecting samples from the moon's far side.

This will be the first of three missions designed to set the stage for a manned lunar landing and the establishment of a base at the moon's south pole by 2030.

Scheduled for launch this week, Chang'e-6 will utilise the backup spacecraft from the successful 2020 Chang'e-5 mission, which was the first to bring back lunar samples to Earth in over four decades. The upcoming mission targets the moon's far side, often referred to as its "hidden" side due to its permanent orientation away from Earth, making direct communication impossible.

To overcome this challenge, Chang'e-6 will rely on the Queqiao-2, a relay satellite recently positioned in lunar orbit.

This satellite will facilitate communications for the mission's expected duration of 53 days, which includes an unprecedented ascent from the moon's far side — a manoeuvre never before attempted.

The mission's significance extends beyond technological prowess; it also underscores China's strategic lunar ambitions and its commitment to international cooperation. Despite the absence of collaboration with Nasa, due to US legal restrictions, China has included scientific payloads from France, Italy, Sweden, and Pakistan in the Chang'e-6 mission.

Future missions, Chang'e-7 and Chang'e-8, are set to carry instruments from Russia, Switzerland, and Thailand as they explore the lunar south pole for water resources and begin outpost construction.

Chang'e-6 aims to land in the northeastern region of the South Pole-Aitken Basin, the oldest and largest recognized impact basin on the moon. This area is of particular scientific interest because it has been less affected by volcanic activity that obscures older geological features on the moon's near side. By returning samples from this area, scientists hope to gain insights into the early evolution of the moon and, by extension, the inner solar system.

The mission's success could provide critical data on the moon's composition and geologic history, offering new clues about the celestial body that has captivated human imagination for centuries.

As Leonard David, author of "Moon Rush: The New Space Race," notes, "If successful, China's Chang'e-6 mission would be a milestone-making event. The robotic reach to the Moon's far side, and bringing specimens back to Earth, helps fill in the blanks about the still-murky origin of our Moon."

As global interest in lunar exploration intensifies, with various nations and private entities aiming for the moon, China's Chang'e-6 mission represents a significant step forward in understanding our closest celestial neighbour. Published By: Sibu Kumar Tripathi Published On: Apr 29, 2024

Moon Phases 2024 – Lunar Calendar

Permalink for Moscow: Moon phases for Moscow, Russia

Moon Phases for Moscow, 1 May 2024 – 23 May 2024

Third quarter, first quarter, moon phases for moscow, moscow, russia in 2024.

Sun and Moon times today for Moscow | Moonrise and moonset times for Moscow | Sunrise and sunset times for Moscow

2024 Moon Phases Calendar

Special moon events in 2024.

• Super New Moon : 10 Feb
• Micro Full Moon : 24 Feb
• Super New Moon : 10 Mar
• Micro Full Moon : 25 Mar
• Super New Moon : 8 Apr
• Blue Moon : 19 Aug (third Full Moon in a season with four Full Moons)
• Partial Lunar Eclipse visible in Moscow on 18 Sep
• Super Full Moon : 18 Sep
• Micro New Moon : 2 Oct
• Super Full Moon : 17 Oct
• Black Moon : 31 Dec (second New Moon in single calendar month)

Articles About Moon Phases

• About Moon Phases
• What Is a Super Full Moon?
• Why Is the Full Moon in the Daytime?
• What Is a Micro Moon?
• Full Moon Names

About the Moon

• Moon Photography Tips & Tricks
• The Moon: Our Satellite

Printable PDF calendar of moon phases

Need some help?

•   Weather

Search location by ZIP code

Shelbyville school to receive tree that was flown around the moon.

• Copy Link Copy {copyShortcut} to copy Link copied!

GET LOCAL BREAKING NEWS ALERTS

The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox.

A Shelby County school is getting a new tree that is out of this world — or it has been.

Collins High School in Shelbyville has been selected to receive an Artemis Moon Tree.

The tree is one of 50 seedlings that were flown around the moon on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Artemis I mission in 2022.

In the photo above you can see a Moon Tree in North Carolina grown from the Apollo 14 mission.

Karen McPherson, a Talented and Gifted Students Instructor for the district, said she worked with a team of students to put together an application for the tree.

They described how they would care for the tree, where they would plant it and worked to get donations from the local Lowe's to build fencing for it.

The lunar lapping tree will arrive in Shelbyville on May 6 or 7 and be planted on May 8 on Discovery Boulevard.

There will be a dedication ceremony on May 10 at 12:30 p.m.

"A new era of Moon trees will one day stand tall in communities across America,” said NASA administrator Bill Nelson. “NASA is bringing the spirit of exploration back down to Earth because space belongs to everyone. The Artemis Generation will carry forth these seedlings that will be fertile ground for creativity, inspiration, and discovery for years to come.”

The Artemis I moon trees, rooted in the legacy of the original moon trees flown by NASA astronaut Stuart Roosa during Apollo 14, journeyed 270,000 miles from Earth aboard the Orion spacecraft. A diverse array of tree species, including sycamores, sweetgums, Douglas firs, loblolly pines, and giant sequoias, were flown around the surface of the moon.

Alora Mazarakis, a Collins alum, works for NASA as an electrical engineer and was part of the Artemis I team.

NASA is giving the moon its own time zone. Why the clock is ticking.

It’s going to start getting crowded on the moon, and we’ll soon need a precise lunar timekeeping system, a shared clock , to coordinate missions and prevent disasters.

Time moves a bit faster on the moon than on Earth because the moon's mass is smaller than that of Earth and its gravity is weaker. That means the moon is going to get its own time zone .

NASA has been asked to establish a unified standard time for the moon and other celestial bodies by the end of 2026. That request came from the White House – specifically the Office of Science and Technology Policy – on April 2.

"The same clock that we have on Earth would move at a different rate on the moon ," said Kevin Coggins, NASA's space communications and navigation chief, in an interview with Reuters.

The difference is slight: 58.7 microseconds per Earth day. (A microsecond is one-millionth of a second.) Microseconds are often used as measurements in electronics, computing and telecommunication applications.

On Earth, Coordinated Universal Time, or UTC , is the standard used to set all time zones around the world. Eastern Time is four hours behind UTC.

The new lunar time zone will be known as Coordinated Lunar Time, or LTC . It's not yet determined whether the moon will have one or multiple time zones.

Why do we need precise time on the moon?

That 58.7 microseconds may not sound like much to worry about. An eye blink, for example, takes 0.1 to 0.4 seconds , or 100,000 to 400,000 microseconds.

But the time discrepancy becomes crucial in space missions, which require perfect precision for communication, tracking and navigation.

Unable to view our graphics? Click here to see them.  

LTC is also needed for secure data transfers between spacecraft and for matched communication among Earth, lunar satellites, bases and astronauts, Reuters reported.

And because future missions will be multinational, all participants will need to be synchronized.

Nations have been using their own standard time in space missions. NASA, for example, used Mission Elapsed Time, or the amount of time from the moment of liftoff, to coordinate space missions.

Where will Coordinated Lunar Time be used?

LTC will be used in operations in cislunar space , the region around the Earth that extends to the moon and past its orbit. It includes:

• The lunar surface.
• Lunar orbits.
• Earth-moon Lagrange points.

Lagrange points are gravity balanced positions in space between two bodies – the Earth and moon, in this example – in which objects such as spacecraft can stay in position. Lagrange points are easy to reach, and many spacecraft use them to perform observations , Space.com says.

Will the moon's time system be similar to that of Earth?

It could be. Earth's UTC uses a group of 450 highly precise atomic clocks in 85 time laboratories around the world. The Office of Science and Technology Policy directive suggests "an ensemble of clocks" on the moon could be used to set up the moon's LTC.

The White House directive also says LTC must have:

• Traceability or a calculated connection to Earth's Coordinated Universal Time.
• Specificity and accuracy to measure very short spans of time, necessary for precise scientific study and spacecraft landings.
• Self-sufficiency , in case connection with Earth is lost.
• Scalability , so other celestial objects or space environments could use it.

NASA will work with the departments of Commerce, Defense, State and Transportation to create and implement the lunar time zone.

NASA also will need to consult the 36 nations that have signed the Artemis Accords , an agreement that spells out countries' activities in space and on the moon.

China and Russia, the two main U.S. rivals in space, have not signed the agreement.

SOURCE USA TODAY Network reporting and research; NASA; Office of Science and Technology Policy; European Space Agency; space.com ; itu.int; Florida Today; Center for Strategic and International Studies

• Subscribe Digital Print

• Tourism in Japan
• Latest News
• Deep Dive Podcast

Today's print edition

Home Delivery

• Crime & Legal
• Science & Health
• More sports
• CLIMATE CHANGE
• SUSTAINABILITY
• EARTH SCIENCE
• Food & Drink
• Style & Design
• TV & Streaming
• Entertainment news

China set to launch high-stakes mission to moon's 'hidden' side

China will soon send a robotic spacecraft on a round trip to the moon's far side in the first of three technically demanding missions that will pave the way for an inaugural Chinese-crewed landing and a base on the lunar south pole.

In 2020, China brought back samples from the moon's near side in the first sample retrieval in more than four decades, confirming for the first time it could safely return an uncrewed spacecraft to Earth from the lunar surface.

This week, China is expected to launch Chang'e-6 using the backup spacecraft from the 2020 mission, and collect soil and rocks from the side of the moon that permanently faces away from Earth.

With no direct line of sight with the Earth, Chang'e-6 must rely on a recently deployed relay satellite orbiting the moon during its 53-day mission, including a never-before attempted ascent from the moon's "hidden" side on its return journey home.

The same relay satellite will support the uncrewed Chang'e-7 and 8 missions in 2026 and 2028, respectively, when China starts to explore the south pole for water and build a rudimentary outpost with Russia.

China aims to put its astronauts on the moon by 2030.

Beijing's polar plans have worried NASA, whose administrator, Bill Nelson, has repeatedly warned that China would claim any water resources as its own.

Beijing says it remains committed to cooperation with all nations on building a "shared" future.

On Chang'e-6, China will carry payloads from France, Italy, Sweden and Pakistan, and on Chang'e-7, payloads from Russia, Switzerland and Thailand.

NASA is banned by U.S. law from any collaboration, direct or indirect, with China.

Under the separate NASA-led Artemis program, U.S. astronauts will land near the south pole in 2026, the first humans on the moon since 1972.

"International cooperation is key (to lunar exploration)," said Clive Neal, professor of planetary geology at the University of Notre Dame. "It's just that China and the U.S. aren't cooperating right now. I hope that will happen."

Chang'e 6 will attempt to land on the northeastern side of the vast South Pole-Aitkin Basin, the oldest known impact crater in the solar system.

The southernmost landing ever was carried out in February by IM-1, a joint mission between NASA and the Texas-based private firm Intuitive Machines.

After touchdown at Malapert A, a site near the south pole that was believed to be relatively flat, the spacecraft sharply tilted to one side amid a host of technical problems, reflecting the high-risk nature of lunar landings.

The south pole has been described by scientists as the "golden belt" for lunar exploration.

Polar ice could sustain long-term research bases without relying on expensive resources transported from Earth.

India's Chandrayaan-1 launched in 2008 confirmed the existence of ice inside polar craters.

Chang'e-6's sample return could also shed more light on the early evolution of the moon and the inner solar system.

The lack of volcanic activity on the moon's far side means there are more craters not covered by ancient lava flows, preserving materials from the moon's early formation.

So far, all lunar samples taken by the United States and the former Soviet Union in the 1970s and China in 2020 were from the moon's near side, where volcanism had been far more active.

Chang'e-6, after a successful landing, will collect about 2 kilograms of samples with a mechanical scoop and a drill.

"If successful, China's Chang'e-6 mission would be a milestone-making event," said Leonard David, author of "Moon Rush: The New Space Race."

"The robotic reach to the moon's far side, and bringing specimens back to Earth, helps fill in the blanks about the still-murky origin of our Moon," he added.

In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.