A page from the "Calendars" exhibit...

A month of moons

With this interactive moon phase calendar, you can choose a month and year and see why lunar months aren’t an exact match with calendar months.

October 2021

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Choose Month and Year:
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
       
1
Waning Crescent Moon
2
Waning Crescent Moon
3
Waning Crescent Moon
4
Waning Crescent Moon
5
Waning Crescent Moon
6
New Moon Crescent Moon
7
Waxing Crescent Moon
8
Waxing Crescent Moon
9
Waxing Crescent Moon
10
Waxing Crescent Moon
11
Waxing Crescent Moon
12
Waxing Crescent Moon
13
First Quarter Moon
14
Waxing Gibbous Moon
15
Waxing Gibbous Moon
16
Waxing Gibbous Moon
17
Waxing Gibbous Moon
18
Waxing Gibbous Moon
19
Waxing Gibbous Moon
20
Full Moon
21
Full Moon
22
Waning Gibbous Moon
23
Waning Gibbous Moon
24
Waning Gibbous Moon
25
Waning Gibbous Moon
26
Waning Gibbous Moon
27
Waning Gibbous Moon
28
Last Quarter Moon
29
Last Quarter Moon
30
Waning Crescent Moon
31
Waning Crescent Moon
next
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For millennia, calendars were constructed according to the phases of the moon. We can only imagine what ancient astronomers thought as they scanned the night sky and saw the constantly changing appearance of this large celestial body.

Step outside! Keep track of the moon in your night sky, and chart the changes yourself. See our tips on how to chart the moon in the sky and explore the phases of the moon over the course of its 29.53-day cycle. In the process, you’ll discover why lunar months aren’t an exact match with calendar months.

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