why does the moon sometimes look closer to the earth then other times?

Answer 1

The words you need to understand this are perigee (the moon is at its nearest) and apogee (the moon is farthest away).

The similar words for the earth's distance from the sun (or another planet's distance from the sun) are perihelion and aphelion,

The orbits, in all cases, are ellipses not perfect circles,

Let's try and put some numbers and dates into that. There is an apogee and a perigee every lunar month

MOON

Perigee Aug 10 18:29 359754 km
Apogee Aug 26 1:24 406270 km
Perigee Sep 8 3:08 357174 km
Apogee Sep 22 5:22 406498 km
Perigee Oct 6 14:08 357409 km
Apogee Oct 19 9:36 406073 km
Perigee Nov 3 23:52 360597 km
Apogee Nov 15 23:21 405192 km
Perigee Dec 2 0:07 365922 km
Apogee Dec 13 18:57 404416 km
Perigee Dec 28 1:49 370320 km

PLANETS

Mercury
Perihelion 46,001,272 km
Aphelion 69,817,079 km

Venus
Perihelion 107,476,002 km
Aphelion 108,941,849 km

Earth
Perihelion 147,098,074 km
Aphelion 152,097,701 km

Mars
Perihelion 206,644,545 km
Aphelion 249,228,730 km

Jupiter
Perihelion 740,742,598 km
Aphelion 816,081,455 km

Saturn
Perihelion 1,349,467,375 km
Aphelion 1,503,983,449 km

Uranus
Perihelion 2,735,555,035 km
Aphelion 3,006,389,405 km

Neptune
Perihelion 4,459,631,496 km
Aphelion 4,536,874,325 km

Pluto
Perihelion 4,436,824,613 km
Aphelion 7,375,927,931 km

Answer 2

I definitely agree that the moon revolves in an elliptical orbit but i don't think that ur eyes can predict the change in size.I have a logic behind it.Have u ever thought that although moon and the sun are quite far away from each other yet they appear to be of the same size.WHY?The answer is angular magnification the angle subtended bu both moon and the sun to human eyes r same so they appear similar in size.If we cannot distinguish between the size of objects so far away from each other then how can u claim to have located a different size of moon.

Answer 3

a properly-beloved perception, stretching back a minimum of to Aristotle contained in the 4th century BC, holds that the Moon looks more effective close to the horizon using a actual magnification outcome brought about with the aid of the Earth's environment. this isn't authentic. even in spite of the undeniable fact that the ambience does change the colour of the Moon, it does no longer enhance or enhance it. in reality, the Moon looks about a million.5% smaller at the same time as it is close to the horizon than at the same time as it is intense contained in the sky, because it is extra away with the aid of as a lot as a million Earth radius and likewise because of atmospheric refraction, which makes clone of the Moon particularly smaller contained in the vertical axis

Answer 4

the small variations in the moons orbit would not be observable with the naked eye. However sometimes atmospheric effects will make the moon appear larger than at other times. This often happens when the moon is close to the horizon. It will often appear to be orange/red as well, again, this is due to atmospheric conditions.

Answer 5

The moon's orbit is elliptical, not circular, so its actual distance from the Earth varies as it moves through its orbit.

More importantly, since the rotation of the moon around the Earth is much slower than the rotation of the Earth itself, its position in its orbit is different each night you observe it. Hence, the distance from your viewing position to the moon's current position is different each night.

Answer 6

It has to do with how far the moon is from the horizon. When you look up, your brain sees things automaticaly as smaller. So when the moon is just rising or setting, it appears to be bigger.

Answer 7

because the orbital of the moon is oval.
if the orbital is circle, the moon may be look as far as other times.

Answer 8

cuz those are the nights that Bruce Almighty is wanting to get laid

Answer 9

because of its orbit

Answer 10

Because it is.