What temperature is the moon?

An illustration of an astronaut sitting in a lounge chair on the moon.

The moon may seem like a cold, lifeless rock. But how cold does it actually get on the lunar surface? What is the temperature of the moon?

Actually, it's not that cold — at least, not all the time. As on Earth, the temperature of the moon's surface changes depending on whether sunlight hits it. In fact, these temperature fluctuations can be quite dramatic.