How to Tell Whether the Moon Is Waxing or Waning

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Determining whether the moon is waxing or waning can tell you a lot about what phase it’s in, how the tides will move, and where the moon is in relation to the Earth and the sun.

It’s also helpful to know where the moon rises and sets during its different phases, in case you want to see it on a particular night.

A waxing moon is in the process of increasing how much of it is lit (as observed night to night). i.e., it's headed toward being a full moon. Waning is the opposite.

There are a couple ways to figure out whether the moon is waxing or waning.

Although the details are slightly different depending on where you are in the world, the bulk of the method is still the same.

Read more...http://www.wikihow.com/Tell-Whether-the-Moon-Is-Waxing-or-Waning

Lunar phase
The lunar phase or phase of the moon is the shape of the illuminated (sunlit) portion of the Moon as seen by an observer on Earth.

The lunar phases change cyclically as the Moon orbits the Earth, according to the changing positions of the Moon and Sun relative to the Earth.

The Moon's rotation is tidally locked by the Earth's gravity, therefore the same lunar surface always faces Earth. This face is variously sunlit depending on the position of the Moon in its orbit.

Therefore, the portion of this hemisphere that is visible to an observer on Earth can vary from about 100% (full moon) to 0% (new moon). The lunar terminator is the boundary between the illuminated and darkened hemispheres.

Each of the four "intermediate" lunar phases (see below) is roughly seven days (~7.4 days) but this varies slightly due to the elliptical shape of the Moon's orbit. Aside from some craters near the lunar poles such as Shoemaker, all parts of the Moon see around 14.77 days of sunlight, followed by 14.77 days of "night".

(The side of the Moon facing away from the Earth is sometimes called the "dark side", which is a misnomer. It receives just as much sunlight as the Earth-facing side − actually slightly more, since the Earth never obscures the Sun from it.)

Read more...https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_phase