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The changing appearance of the moon's light, known as its phases, is caused by the relative positions of the sun, Earth, and moon. As the moon orbits Earth, different portions of its illuminated half are seen from Earth, resulting in the moon appearing to wax and wane.
The Moon's changing appearance is called its phases. This is caused by the relative position of the Moon, Earth, and Sun, creating different amounts of sunlight reflecting off the Moon's surface as seen from Earth.
The moon is seen from the Earth...
The changing appearance of the moon as seen from Earth is due to its orbit around the Earth and the different angles at which sunlight hits its surface. These changing angles create the phases of the moon, such as new moon, crescent, quarter, gibbous, and full moon. These phases repeat in a cycle that lasts about 29.5 days.
The moon reflects sunlight as it orbits the Earth. Its surface appears to change in appearance due to the varying angles at which sunlight hits it, resulting in different phases of the moon as seen from Earth.