How to take a picture of the moon with my Nikon D5000?

I need the best possible picture that I can take with no tripod, and a 55-18mm lenses.

You'll need to find something to put the camera on so it can be motionless. Prop it up with rocks on the hood of a car or whatever; you can't shoot the moon at night handheld.

Try an exposure time of 1 second at 400 ISO,. Adjust from there… If 1 second is overexposed, go down to 1/2 second. If 1 second is underexposed, go up to 2 seconds or 4 seconds.

Leave the aperture setting on automatic.

Get a really long lense and 5000 super distance lazer spot lights.

The short lens is going to be your problem. The moon will be tiny in the distance. If you want detail in the moon and not just a light blob, you have to use a faster shutter speed, no tripod required. The moon is the sun's bounce card. I calculated a 11 ev, the moon itself is as bright as a cloudy day. The sun hits the moon, the moon hits the earth. We run the gamut of lighting scenarios. From 15 to 0.

Try F5.6 with about 1/160 shutter speed. Spot metering, and a Tripod is a must. You might have to play with the shutter speed.

Edit: Sorry I didn't see that you don't have a tripod. You might use some pillows or bean bags etc. To prop your camera up.