What events have been determined by the phases of the moon?

The phases of the Moon occur because the Sun provides light from over THERE, while we are HERE looking at the Moon. As the Moon orbits the Earth, the light from the Sun is reflected away, and some of it hits the Earth. But half of the Moon is dark, with no sunlight, and we can only see the parts that are illuminated.

You can see this at home. Place a BRIGHT light at one end of a room and point it at you, at the other end. Hold a Basketball at arms' length, and turn around slowly holding the ball in front of you. You will see that when your back is to the light and the ball is in front of you, the ball is completely lit up. As you turn 90 degrees, the ball is only half illuminated, and as you turn to face the light, the ball becomes dark - because the illuminated side of the ball is away from you.

And if the ball blocks out the light, this is like a solar eclipse.