Ramadan is a holy festival of the Islamic community. It falls on the 9th month of the Islamic calendar and lasts for around 29 to 30 days depending upon when the new moon can be seen. Read on to know more about Ramadan moon sighting.
Moon Sighting for Ramadan
The month of Ramadan usually starts with the sighting of the new moon which marks the beginning of the 9th month of the Islamic calendar. Traditionally, this method is being used to fix the date of Ramadan as stated in the Quran, and was followed by the Prophet Muhammad.
The festival continues for a month until the first crescent of the new moon can be seen again. This actually marks the beginning of the new lunar month during which the Eid-ul-Fitr, another holy festival of the Muslims starts.
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| However, there’s a lot of disagreement between the Muslims worldwide as to when the Ramadan should actually start. The Muslims traditionally view the Ramadan moon with their naked eye, which leads to differences in moon sighting for Ramadan between different countries in the world. To avoid such confusion, people are now interested in using astronomical calculations to fix the date of Ramadan. |
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Astronomical calculations actually help in making predictions as to when the Ramadan moon can be sighted. However, Muslims worldwide tend to follow the traditional method of moon sighting for Ramadan. |
