Tonight 2/19/07, I can see the dark side of the moon, and what looks like a planet under the moon, is it?

Question

If it is a planet which one is it? Also the moon was in the west sky tonight, why is this?

Answer 1

Venus is right next to the moon. It should also appear as a crescent under high magnification. The dark side of the moon can be seen because of earthshine (it's not a beverage on the moon). The earth is bright enough on the moon to light up its dark side just like the full moon lights up the earth at night.

Answer 2

The moon rotates so that one side always faces the Earth. Because it rotates, it does have a "day" equal to it's orbit around the Earth. Different parts of the moon are lit at different times. When it is full, the Earth-facing side is fully lit. When it is a slim crescent like it is right now, only a small part of the Earth-facing side is lit, and most of the side that we cannot see is lit.

The "dark side" of the moon changes over the course of a lunation. The far side of the moon is the part that we never see here from Earth.

You can see the dark side of the moon right now due to Earthshine. From the moon's perspective, Earth is almost completley full, and just as how a full or near-full moon lights up the dark side of the Earth, the near-full Earth lights up the dark side of the moon a little, so it can be seen.

The planet it is near currently is Venus. It isn't a crescent either. It's currently in a gibbous phase and will remain this way until it's greatest eastern elongation later this year, at which point it's phase will begin to wane into a crescent. You'd need a telescope to tell though, it will remain just a bright point of light in the sky to the naked eye.

Answer 3

The moon has its own orbit of the Earth, just as we have our own orbit of the sun. Due to the speed of moon's orbit it comparison to the Earth's spinning on its axis this causes the moon to be in, which may look like, a different spot in the sky every night (or day). The moon is also out during the day, due to what was talked about previously. The moon is in its waxing phase right now and will be full toward the end of the month. It is the planet venus which is under the moon at this time.

Answer 4

Venus, the dark side is lit by earthlight, and the moon is in the west, HOW IS THE MOON EVER SUPPOSED TO SET IF IT"S NOT IN THE WEST??

It's really very nice though, watch for them to meet up 2-4 days after each new moon, with some months passing closer than others. May 19, '07 in the evening is close for the US.

And another thing, the thin "horns up" moon like you saw occurs greatest in February in the northern hemisphere.

Answer 5

The planet is Venus.
The moon rises in the east and sets in the west, just like the sun. It appears first in the west when its just coming out of full moon. Each night it will ride higher (towards the east) in the sky until full moon, then it slides more to the east until we don't see it in the night sky (new moon).
Then the cycle repeats.

Answer 6

I saw that too. A nice view, wasn't it! The bright planet Venus just below the crescent Moon with the dark part of the Moon dimly lit by Earthshine.

Answer 7

No, you can't. Or won't if you try. You might be looking at an Islamic flag.
The only dark side of the moon you can hear or see is Pink Floyd's album.
The moon's rotation matches it's orbit around the earth, one rotation per day. Moonless nights really aren't. The dark side faces the earth. Only one side of the moon ever sees sunlight. The dark side is always in the dark.

Answer 8

If the planet is bright it's probably Venus, or Mars. And you can't see the dark side of the moon from Earth, you need to fly a spacecraft around to the other side.

Answer 9

That planet would be Venus, the brightest object in the night sky, other than the moon.

Answer 10

No its not a planet a lot of people think it is but its not what it really is is that the moon is like a round cookie when you bite it its in half and it looks like somebody took a bite out of it but its really a solar eclipse,think about it.