The Natural Compass

Moon tonight

First Quarter

We see half the moon lit up — the right side looks bright like a capital D.

This is a crescent moon: the thin bright curve is sunlight; the large dark area is the moon’s night side.

Everyone on Earth sees the same phase at the same moment — only your local clock time differs. The drawing matches how the moon looks in the northern sky; south of the equator, left and right in the picture swap.