Dubai: The end of Ramadan and the first day of Eid Al Fitr is less than a fortnight away, and predictions have already started as to when the Muslim festival will fall in the UAE.
Ebrahim Al Jarwan, General Supervisor at Sharjah Planetarium, said that according to astronomical calculations, Friday June 15 will be the first day of Eid Al Fitr and looking further down the calendar, Eid Al Adha will most likely fall on Wednesday, August 22.
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Eid Al Fitr and Eid Al Adha are the two main Islamic celebrations, translated as the ‘festival of breaking the fast’ and the ‘festival of sacrifice’.
Al Jarwan will be gazing at the night sky by June 13, as the new moon that marks the start of the Shawwal month is expected to start appearing, “but we expect to definitely see it after the sunset of June 14,” which makes June 15 the first day of Eid Al Fitr.
The Islamic calendar is based on the moon and, according to astronomical calculations, Ramadan this year will last for 29 days.
Moon sighting
In this archive photograph, an official from the State Islamic University (STAIN), uses a telescope to observe the moon after sunset from the coast of Madura in East Java province of Indonesia on the eve of Ramadan. Source: AFP
Every year, Muslims across the world gather with friends, family and the entire community to celebrate Eid as the month-long fasting of Ramadan ends.
The exact dates of the start and the end of Islam's holy month of Ramadan, however, depend on the sighting of the new moon.
Traditionally, Eid Al Fitr is celebrated after the first sighting of the crescent moon shortly after sunset.
If the moon is not observed immediately after the 29th day of the lunar month, then it is celebrated the following day.
