Final answer:
The Moon is positioned between the Sun and Earth at the start of its cycle, marking the new moon phase, which is true. The actual positioning and path of the Moon can differ from diagram representations due to the inclination of its orbit. Regular full moons occur because the Moon's orbit causes Earth's shadow to usually miss the Moon.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement asking whether the Moon is almost directly between the Sun and Earth at the start of its cycle can be associated with the new moon phase, which marks the beginning of the lunar cycle.
This is the phase where the Moon is positioned between the Earth and Sun, making the side facing Earth not illuminated, hence, this statement is true. However, diagrams often exaggerate the proximity of the Moon to Earth and its path in the sky, which can be misleading. In reality, the Moon's orbit is inclined by about 5 degrees to the ecliptic, the path the Sun takes through the sky, which allows us to see the Moon illuminated even when it is on the same side of Earth as the Sun—except during solar eclipses, when the Moon does cover the Sun from our viewpoint.
The Moon's apparent size in the sky is nearly the same as that of the Sun, despite the vast difference in their actual sizes and distances from Earth. Due to the Moon's significant distance from Earth, approximately 30 Earth-diameters away, and the inclination of its orbit, Earth's shadow usually misses the Moon, making regular full moons possible without an eclipse. Only during a lunar eclipse does Earth's shadow cover the Moon.