why does the moon sometimes look bigger and nearer than it is?
462021
It doesn't GET any bigger than it is, it just LOOKS bigger because it really IS nearer\n\nBecause its distance from the earth varies as the orbit is not a circle, as you asssume, but an ellipse (oval).\n\nThe furthest distance from the earth that the moon reaches in any orbit (lunar month) is called the APOGEE and the nearest distance it approaches in that orbit is the PERIGEE.\n\nIn the table below the distances are in kilometres, measured from the centre of the earth to the centre of the moon.\n\nJust gone:\n\nMar 13  APOGEE 406272 km \nMar 28  PERIGEE 359169 km\n\nComing up soon:\n    \nApr  9 APOGEE 405549 km    \nApr 25 PERIGEE 363735 km  \n\nThe earth's orbit round the Sun is an ellipse too, and the nearest distance in any one orbit (year) is called PERIHELION and the furthest distance in that orbit is called APHELION.\n\nHelios is the Greek word for the sun and Peri- and Ap- are prefixes meaning near to and far from. The sun looks correspondingly smaller at aphelion and larger at perihelion.  \n\nSometimes eclipses of the sun are not quite total if the sun is bigger than usual (near or at perihelion) and the moon smaller than usual (near or at apogee).\n\nThere is a more pronounced variation in the distance between Earth and Mars than either the variation in Sun-Earth or Earth-Moon distances. Mars looks a lot brighter and a lot dimmer as a consequence, at these times.\n\nTo visualise why, think of a clock face. The sun is in the middle of the dial. The earth is on the tip of the hour hand and Mars is on the tip of the minute hand. When the time on the clock face is midnight, five past one, ten past two etc earth and Mars are at their closest. When the time on the clock face is 12.33, 1.37, 2.43 etc Earth and Mars are at their furtherst apart, Mars being the radius of an earth orbit plus the radius of a Mars orbit away, beyond the Sun.\n\n(This too-simple model assumes circles not ellipses and assumes that Mars years are twelve Earth years, where in reality Mars years are only about twice an Earth year. But it gives you a general idea.)
104556
No.\n\nThe distance between the Moon and the Sun is always changing.  Sometimes the Moon is between the Earth & the Sun, and sometimes it is on the other side of the Earth from the Sun.\n\nAll because the Moon is orbiting the Earth.
30071
Because the rays of light that come from the sun and deflected from the moon go through more of the atmosphere when they're near the horizon and thus, are scattered more throughout, thereby reaching your eyes as a bigger image.
1138031
Earth shine is the correct answer. When the Moon is crescent as seen from Earth, the Earth is nearly full as seen from the Moon. And Earth is bigger and has much higher reflectivity than the Moon, so a nearly full Earth gives much more light than a nearly full Moon does.
921474
Because it does not pass between where you are and the moon, or between the sun and the moon (and if it did I would think it would be so small on such a bright field any shadow would be lost in the 'blur' and distance)
245326
It's an optical illusion, because you can easily compare it to other objects on the ground when the moon is closer to the ground.
790340
Beacause asit goes around the Earth it becomes closer and further away during its cycle.  The moon is in an oval orbit.\nhttp://stardate.org/nightsky/moon/
1090141
Well, not a REAL man. It just looks like the moon has a face if you stare at it for awhile. It's really just the craters and landscape that gives the illusion of a "face."
394180
It has to do with refraction due to different densities of air-in cooler climates, there tends to be much warmer air near the surface, with colder air in higher altitudes, plus the colder air is much more dense, so acts like a magnifying lense- The very largest moon-views are always seen close to the horizon because of this.
473429
Because the moon reflects light from the sun.
1027317
You mean the moon and the sun, which is true\nsometimes, but there are also eclipses where\nthe moon is smaller than the sun, so a small\nring of light is left uncovered (called an annular\neclipse)...\n\nBy a stroke of amazing coincidence, both the\nmoon and the sun are approx 108 times as\nfar from the earth as their diameter, so they\nappear the same size in the sky... 108 is a\nmystic number in spirituality, so I doubt if this\nis really a coincidence!
869305
The appearance of the Moon is also dependent on the fact the the Earth is rotating on its axis. Objects appear at the horizon, drift overhead and slip below the horizon again. that is the main reason the Moon looks as it does.\n\n;-D The Moon is romantic! Let's not forget that!
1152361
This is an optical illusion caused when the moon is near the horizon.  In angular terms, the moon appears to move with an angular velocity of about 14.5 degrees per hour (15 degrees per hour due to the earth's rotation, minus approx. 1/28 of that to account for the moon's revolution around the earth in what appears to be the opposite direction).\n\nWhen the moon is near the horizon, we perceive it as moving more rapidly because our eyes have the reference point of the earth's surface to compare.\n\nWhen it is high in the sky, there is no convenient reference point on earth nearby. The other stars, etc. also appear to move at about 15 degrees per hour due to the earth's rotation - so the apparent motion of the moon compared to them is much less than the apparent motion with respect to the earth.
301180
Also, we only see it when it is above the horizon.\n\nDuring the day, the sun is obviously above the horizon.  But the moon sets an hour or so later each day, so sometimes it is below the horizon in the day, and sometimes not.
1185431
Because in the greater scheme of things, the distance you are travelling is miniscule compared to the distance to the Moon.\n\nEver notice how telephone poles rush by but distant mountains take a while to pass? Poles are closer so they pass by quicker, mountains are a bit further away, they take longer. The Moon is considerably more distant than either so it appears to stand still.
823013
It's an optical illusion.  When the Moon is low on the horizon, we can easily compare its size with the size of familiar things like trees and buildings, while when it is high in the sky we can't compare it as easily.\n\nTo prove this to yourself, the next time you see the Moon, hold your pinky finger up at arms length to "cover" the Moon, and you'll notice it covers the Moon quite easily.  Make a mental note of the size of your little finger compared to the size of the Moon.  Now the next time you see the Moon look huge along the horizon, do the pinky thing again, and you'll notice it's really the same size as before.
957189
This is an optical illusion - It has to do with how the brain interpretes things that are in front of you compared to above you. Try this for yourself: Take a dime and hold it out in front of you to cover the moon. You will see the moon is the same size both in front and overhead.