On 30 November 2023, astronauts aboard the ISS took a photograph of the Moon in the waning gibbous phase from their orbit 262 miles above the Swiss Alps. After the full moon, the Moon enters the waning gibbous phase. As the Moon travels back towards the Sun, its illuminated portion appears to shrink, but because of its orbit, it gradually disappears from our view.

While astronauts observe and photograph the Moon from space, you can do the same from Earth! Here are a few tips:

- Planning is important - explore the location during the day and practise with your camera.
- Know when and where the Moon will appear.
- Zoom in - the Moon can look bigger in photos than it actually is, so zoom in as close as you can, especially if you're using a smartphone.
You can also get advice from professionals: On Wednesday 24 July at 16:05, astronauts Don Pettit and Matthew Dominick will talk about astrophotography in low Earth orbit on the NASA X account (formerly Twitter).

Image description:

The sun's rays illuminate the Moon in the top centre in brownish grey. The deep darkness of space is visible behind it. A blue haze - the Earth's atmosphere - is visible in the lower third of the photograph. At the bottom, white clouds cover the image.