phases of the moon

there are 8 main phases of waxing crescent, waxing half, waxing gibbous , full moon, waning gibbous, waning half,waning crescent, new moon. each month the moon completes the cycle at least once .when the moon completes the cycle more than one it is called a blue moon. sometime blue moons can mess up a cycle for another month and that month wont have a full month.

New moon

a new moon occurs when the moon is between the Earth and sun. during a new moon the moon seems dark. it seems that way because for the moon to shine it needs the sun light to reflect off the side facing earth and that does not happen during a new moon because of its position.

Half moon

a half moon occurs about one week after a new moon. a half moon happens when the moon is half way around its orbit. during a half moon you ether see the left or right side of the moon.

full moon

a full moon occurs about a week after a half moon and two weeks after a new moon. a full moon happens about half way in the cycle.