Which describes why the Earth sees different moon phases?

Which describes why the Earth sees different moon phases?

• A. The Moon Revolves Around the Sun
• B. The Sun Lights Different Parts of the Moon
• C. The Moon Rotates Around the Earth
• D. The Moon Rotates on Its Axis

Answer: (B)

Moon phases come from the way sunlight falls on the Moon and how much of that lit side we can see from Earth as the Moon orbits. The Sun provides light to half of the Moon at any time, and as the Moon moves around Earth, the angle between the Sun, Moon, and Earth changes. That changing angle means we see different portions of the illuminated half, producing new moon, crescent, quarter, gibbous, and full moon phases. The Moon does rotate on its axis, but its rotation is synchronized with its orbit, so we always see the same face—not the cause of the changing phases. While the Moon does travel around the Sun as part of the Earth–Moon system, the phases are best explained by the Sun lighting different parts of the Moon and our changing viewpoint from Earth.

Moon phases come from the way sunlight falls on the Moon and how much of that lit side we can see from Earth as the Moon orbits. The Sun provides light to half of the Moon at any time, and as the Moon moves around Earth, the angle between the Sun, Moon, and Earth changes. That changing angle means we see different portions of the illuminated half, producing new moon, crescent, quarter, gibbous, and full moon phases. The Moon does rotate on its axis, but its rotation is synchronized with its orbit, so we always see the same face—not the cause of the changing phases. While the Moon does travel around the Sun as part of the Earth–Moon system, the phases are best explained by the Sun lighting different parts of the Moon and our changing viewpoint from Earth.