Our Moon reaches apogee, (greatest distance from Earth), for this orbit, on Thursday November 7^th. At that time the Moon will be at a distance of 31.75 Earth diameters 251,693 miles (405,060 km) from the Earth.

   On the day of the apogee Moon the 11-day old waning gibbous Moon rises during mid-afternoon and sets later the following morning.

   Does our Moon actually go around the Earth as this graphic shows? From our perspective on the Earth the Moon appears to circle around the Earth. However, in reality, the Moon orbits the Sun together with the Earth^*

   ^*Click here to read my 2006 Scope on the Sky column “The Real Shape of the Moon’s Orbit”. (PDF)

   
   
   

Click here to go to the Qué tal in the Current Skies web site for monthly observing information, or here to go to bobs-spaces.


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