About wheresthemoon.com

How it works

Everything is calculated in your browser. The moon’s position comes from the main terms of the lunar theory in Jean Meeus’s Astronomical Algorithms (chapter 47), corrected for nutation, for parallax (the moon is close enough that where you stand on Earth shifts it by up to a degree) and for atmospheric refraction near the horizon. Moonrise and moonset are the moments the top of the moon crosses the horizon. Phases use Meeus’s chapter 49.

We checked it against PyEphem for New York, Los Angeles, London, Sydney, Reykjavík, Tokyo and Nairobi, and against timeanddate.com for New York on 27 October 2026. Direction and altitude matched to within 0.01°, rise and set times to within about 40 seconds, and all 149 phase times from 2026 to 2028 to within 20 seconds.

Your location

If you allow location, your browser gives the page your coordinates and the sky is calculated on your device. Nothing is sent anywhere. You can pick a city or type coordinates instead.

The music

Purrple Cat is a solo lofi project that started in December 2018. Produced 500+ songs with 500+ million streams and 425K followers. Featured in Disney, League of Legends & Rocket League.

The background is the City Nights album loop, and the player holds 22 Purrple Cat songs named for the moon and the stars. Purrple Cat Self Releases are free under CC BY 4.0 on social media and livestreams with credit:

Music by Purrple Cat Copy credit

• Never re-upload the music to music streaming services, and don’t release remixes, samples or covers of it there.
• Never register it in Content ID. Purrple Cat Self Releases are never in Content ID.
• No AI: every song is made by Purrple Cat.

Questions

Where is the moon right now?

It depends on where you are and the time. Allow location (or pick a city) at the top of this page and it shows the direction to face (compass bearing from true north) and how high to look (altitude in degrees above the horizon), updated every few seconds.

Why can’t I see the moon tonight?

Usually because it’s below the horizon. The moon rises about 50 minutes later each day, so for part of every month it rises after midnight or only in daylight. Around new moon it’s up in the daytime next to the sun and you can’t see it at all. If the table says the moon is up, check the direction: trees, buildings and clouds can hide a low moon.

Why is the moon out during the day?

The moon spends about as much time above the horizon in daylight as at night. In the week after first quarter it rises in the afternoon, and in the week after full moon it sets in the morning, so it’s often visible in a blue sky.

What phase is the moon today?

The phase card at the top shows today’s phase, how much of the disc is lit and the moon’s age in days since the last new moon, drawn the way it looks from your hemisphere.

When is the next full moon?

The “Next full and new moons” list shows the next dates and times in your time zone, and the moon phases calendar lists every new moon, quarter and full moon through 2028.

How accurate is this?

Positions use the lunar theory in Jean Meeus’s Astronomical Algorithms, with parallax and refraction. Checked against PyEphem for seven cities, altitude and direction agree to within 0.01°, rise and set times to within about 40 seconds, and every new moon, quarter and full moon from 2026 to 2028 to within 20 seconds. Hills, buildings and unusual air can shift what you actually see by a minute or two.

Is my location stored?

Your location is only used in your browser to calculate the sky. It is never sent anywhere. If you allow it, it is remembered on this device only, so the page opens on your sky next time.