The Moon
Data as of July 2026
384,400 kmaway on average
The Moon orbits 384,400 km from Earth on average: close enough that light makes the trip in 1.3 seconds and Apollo astronauts flew it in about 3 days, yet far enough that 30 Earths would fit in the gap.
▶ Visit the Moon in 3D
Our back yard, and it's still enormous
The Moon is 3,475 km across: about a quarter of Earth's width, unusually large for a moon relative to its planet. Its orbit is slightly elliptical: 356,500 km at its closest (a "supermoon" full moon), 406,700 km at its farthest. It is tidally locked, always showing us the same face, and it is slowly leaving: laser reflectors placed by Apollo crews show it drifting away at about 3.8 cm per year, roughly the rate your fingernails grow.
The Moon is the most distant place any human has ever stood, and the distance to it fits inside the Sun three and a half times over.
The Moon by the numbers
Diameter
3,475 km
Average distance
384,400 km
Closest / farthest
356,500 / 406,700 km
Light travel time
1.3 seconds
Apollo travel time
≈ 3 days
Surface gravity
1.62 m/s² (1/6 of Earth)
Orbit period
27.3 days
Drifting away at
3.8 cm per year
In the interactive view, the Moon circles Earth as you watch, then switch to 1:1 scale and see how even our nearest neighbour becomes hard to find.
Keep going
✓ Facts verified July 2026
Every figure on this page is a real, rounded value checked against primary sources. Found something out of date? See how we keep it accurate.