The questions that are being asked (and should be asked) are:
Why is it that most 1st."day" Hilals (Crescent Moons) are very thin, hard to see, low on the horizon, and visible for only 5 to 30 minutes, whereas, some "claimed" 1st."day" Hilals are definitely quite thick, very obvious (easy to find), "high" on the horizon, and are visible
for more than 90 minutes ? !!!
Are the thicker, brighter, higher and longer lasting Hilals really the 2nd."day" Hilals and we might have made a mistake and not sighted the 1st."day" Hilal ?
[The 1st."day" is within quotes because we actually sight the 1st.Hilal of the month after sunset - which is already "night", not "day".]
The answer is compartively quite straightforward, and is divided into the following sections:
1. PERSONAL EXPERIENCES OF 1st."DAY" HILALS.
2. THE ASTRONOMICAL NEW MOON IS ON SUCH-AND-SUCH A DATE !
3. THE FULL MOON IS ON SUCH-AND-SUCH A DATE !
4. RANGE OF PARAMETERS FOR 1st."DAY" HILALS.
5. INTERNATIONAL DATE LINE
"I know from personal experience that ...." and then correlate this statement with some explanations. Most of us can say that "I KNOW FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE of witnessing many BEAUTIFUL 1st.DAY Hilals that a 1st. day Hilal was really VERY THIN, was sometimes very hard to see, was VERY LOW ON THE HORIZON, and was visible for only 5 to 10 minutes !!!"
Many of us also add, intuitively, that a Hilal that was higher, brighter, stayed longer in the sky (after sunset to moonset), was definitely a "2nd.day Hilal" !!
In reality, there is a range of these parameters within which the 1st.day Hilal is usually visible. The following section shows how the Hilal "grows" as we MOVE WEST, from any location, and it becomes higher (in altitude) and hence stays in the sky longer (from after sunset to moonset) AND YET IT IS THE 1st. DAY HILAL.
The newspapers usually print the Astronomical New Moon date (and sometimes the time). At the Astronomical New Moon the Hilal is INVISIBLE since what we "see" from the Earth is the dark non-illuminated half of the Moon. We have to wait untill the Moon has moved away from the Sun for the Hilal to be visible. The amount of waiting can vary from about 12 hours to more than 24 hours from the time of Astronomical New Moon.
It is incorect to state that (Astronomical) New Moon is on ... .. . date and hence the Islamic Month starts from the next date.
Therefore, IT IS WRONG TO STATE THAT FULL MOON IS ON ... .. . DATE, HENCE THE 1st OF THIS MONTH HAD TO BE ON ... .. . (14 days earlier) DATE !!!
Similar reasoning applies to the First Quarter Moon date and the Third Quarter Moon date.
ALTITUDES OF Hilal (Crescent Moon)
at time of local Sunset (Degrees) for points on Latitude 40 Deg North
Date *********************************************************************
1997 180W 150W 120W 90W 60W 30W 0 30E 60E 90E 120E 150E 180E Long
============================================================================
7 Feb 8* 7* 6* 5 4 3 2 0 -1 -2 -3 -4 -5 Alt
VD I I I I I I I I I I I I Sgh
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
8 Feb 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 Alt
V V V V V V V V V MP MP P D
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I = IMPOSSIBLE V = VISIBLE * = Less Than
VD = VERY DIFFICULT D = DIFFICULT
P = PROBABLE MP = MOST PROBABLE
At the most west location (150W), on 7 Feb 1997, the Hilal was NOT expected to be visible (I=impossible for sighting) and the altitude of the Hilal was less than 7 degrees. Hence, on the next evening of 8 Feb 1997, the Hilal WAS expected to be at an altitude of 19 degs and would be very easily VISIBLE, be thick, and be in the sky for a "long" time. This could give an indication of a "2nd.day Hilal" but it was a 1st.day Hilal. [7 deg (previous day altitude) + 12 deg (increase in 24 hours) = 19 deg.]Similar information is also presented for March 1995 (Shawwal 1415). The altitude (height above the horizon) of the Hilal, at the time of local sunset for 1 Mar 1995 and 2 Mar 1995, along points on the earth that are at LATITUDE 40 DEGREES NORTH, and longitude from 180 West through 180 East is shown below. The sighting possibilities are also indicated.
ALTITUDES OF Hilal (Crescent Moon)
at time of local Sunset (Degrees) for points on Latitude 40 Deg North
Date *********************************************************************
1995 180W 150W 120W 90W 60W 30W 0 30E 60E 90E 120E 150E 180E Long
============================================================================
1 Mar 9* 8* 7* 6* 5 4 3 2 1 0 -1 -1 -2 Alt
D VD I I I I I I I I I I I Sgh
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 Mar 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 9* Alt
V V V V V V V V V MP MP P D
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I = IMPOSSIBLE V = VISIBLE * = Less Than
VD = VERY DIFFICULT D = DIFFICULT
P = PROBABLE MP = MOST PROBABLE
There are some important points to note from the behavior of the altitude of the Hilal at places on the same latitude. It should be noted that the visibility varies with latitude, for the same longitude (data for this conclusion is not presented in this post). As we move from east to west, with a travel of every 30 degrees of longitude, the altitude of the Hilal increases by approximately ONE (1) degree. In fact, for 1997 and 1995, the increase in altitude in 24 hours is approximately 11 to 13 degs.
The range of altitudes in which the Hilal is visible on the first day is approximately from 7 degrees to 12 (and above) degrees, at the time of local sunset. This is based on emperical data collected over more than 200 years (for small azimuth differences between sun and earth). At the most west location on 1 March 1995 where the Hilal was NOT expected to be visible (I=impossible for sighting), the altitude of the Hilal was less than 7 degrees on 1 March 1995. Hence, on the next evening of 2 March 1995, the Hilal was expected to be at an altitude of 18 degs and would be very easily visible, be thick, and be in the sky for a "long" time. This could give an indication of a "2nd.day Hilal" but it was a 1st.day Hilal. [7 deg (previous day altitude) + 11 deg (increase in 24 hours) = 18 deg.]
This is the reason that the so called apparant "second day" Hilal is in reality still the Hilal OF THE FIRST DAY.
Ramadan 1417 was started in North America on Friday, 10 January 1997. In another eastern muslim country, for example Pakistan, this Ramadan started on Saturday, 11 January 1997. Just as Friday was correct for North America, Saturday was correct for Pakistan !! It is wrong to say that Pakistan missed a day of fasting at the start of Ramadan.
There are more details of additional parameters that come into play while deciding the sightability of the Hilal and these were mentioned elsewhere in other posts.
I hope this has helped to further understand the dynamics of the Sun-Earth-Moon motions.
Your brother in Islam,
Mohib.
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