Studying Islam

Post Reply

Username

Invalid Username or Password

Password

Format

Message Icon

Message

- Forum Code is ON
- HTML is OFF

Smilies

[quote]RAMADAAN  
1425 AH
 
HILAAL SIGHTING

DEFINITION OF HILAAL

The HILAAL is the reflected sunlight first sighted on the lunar surface following conjunction (birth of the moon) and viewed on the western horizon in the time-period between observed eye-level sunset and moonset (lag).

[Until such time in the future when all of mankind possess telescopic vision, the rule remains a naked-eye sighting]

WHEN TO SIGHT?

Organised sighting takes place at the end of the correctly marked 29th day of the Islamic lunar month.

30-DAY LUNAR MONTH

If the moon is in its hidden phase (ghumma alaykum) at the end of the correctly marked 29th day then the month is extended to a 30 day duration and it is not necessary to sight the moon at the end of the 30th day.

RAMADAAN HILAAL

1.1

The Hilaal of Shabaan was sighted in South Africa and in Morocco on the evening of Wednesday September 15, 2004 and the first day of Shabaan corresponded to Thursday September 16. All countries to the west of the lunar line of South Africa and Morocco began the first of Shabaan on September 16. Countries to the east of the aforementioned lunar line should have started the first day of Shabaan on Saturday, September 17  (this includes Asia, Australia and the Middle East).

Unfortunately, some of these countries began Shabaan on Tuesday, September 14 and on Wednesday Wednesday, September 15 due to errors made in the beginning of previous months or using a criteria alien to Islamic Law, and would therefore use an incorrect date to search for the Ramadaan Hilaal.

1.2

Conjunction (birth of the moon) occurs when the sun and the moon occupy the same celestial longitude. For the coming month this occurs at longitude 144o E.
(over the Gulf of Papua, New Guinea and west of Cape York, Australia).

The time of conjunction is given as 2h49m16s on Thursday 2004/10/14 according to coordinated universal time (the old GMT – Greenwich mean time) and converted to time zones (a geo-political arrangement) using a geocentric measurement (centre of the earth to centre of the moon).

Personally, for the purposes of accuracy, I prefer a topocentric measurement (surface of earth locality of observer to the lower limb of the lunar surface) and real longitudinal time.

Hidden phase of the moon

VIEWING PARAMETERS     [sunset values]

[percentage illumination – amount of reflected sunlight on the lunar surface as a percentage of the whole lunar disc
altitude – height of the moon in degrees above the eye-level horizon
elongation – angular distance of the moon from the sun
azimuth – distance in degrees at observed eye-level sunset from the upper disc of the sun along the horizon to a point directly below the centre of the moon
lag – the time-period between sunset and moonset]

Research into 439 southern hemisphere Hilaal sightings (213 positive and 226 negative) yields the following boundaries:-

A

THE HILAAL WAS NOT SIGHTED WHEN THE PERCENTAGE ILLUMINATION WAS BELOW 0.9% AT SUNSET.

On the 5 occasions when the Hilaal was seen at 0.9% illumination the minimum ALTITUDE was 6.980o, the minimum ELONGATION was 10.514o, the minimum AZIMUTH was 7.179o, and the minimum LAG was 39.5 minutes.

B

THE HILAAL WAS NOT SIGHTED WHEN THE ALTITUDE WAS BELOW 4.286o AT SUNSET.

The above sighting required an ILLUMINATION of 2.2%, a minimum ELONGATION of 16.741o and a minimum AZIMUTH of 16.005o

C

NO POSITIVE SIGHTING WAS MADE WHEN THE ELONGATION WAS 
BELOW 10.514o

Taking into account the data pertaining to nine sample areas across the globe at sunset on Thursday 2004/10/14 
(Adelaide, Beijing,New Delhi,Makkah,Cairo,Cape Town,London,New York and Santa Barbara – 138.32o E to 120o W)
the moon remains in its hidden phase throughout the world.

1.3

CORRECT BEGINNING OF RAMADAAN

Ramadaan 1425 AH begins throughout the globe on Saturday, October 16, 2004 (compilated from the previous evening at Maghrib).

Best wishes to all Muslims during this coming holy month.

Abdurrazak Ebrahim Snr (Dr)
Cape Town.

ebrahimsenior@ctrs.co.za[/quote]

Mode

Check here to be notified by email whenever someone replies to your topic

Show Preview