I have two words for the crescent sighting prospects for Shawwal (Eid-ul-Fitr) 1432AH from Pakistan: very interesting!
On 29th August 2011 (28th Ramazan 1432), the Moon sets before the Sun throughout Pakistan.
If your western horizon is clear on 30th August 2011 (29th Ramazan 1432), you should be able to easily see the crescent Moon. Here are the various astronomical parameters for Karachi for that date (please ignore the typo – it is 30th August and not 3rd August):
I’m really hoping for a clear western horizon on 30th August because the crescent Moon would be next to a beautiful minaret near my home in North Nazimabad. It would be a photo-op quite similar to the one I had on March 15th:
Obviously, knowing exactly where to look for the Moon can be very helpful. How do you go about finding that? First, mark the location of the Sun when it is about to set on 30th August. Then with your arm fully stretched before you, look at the span of your open hand. The distance between the tips of your thumb and little finger equal about 18° (or if your hand is big, about 20°). As you can see in the Stellarium screenshot above, the distance between the azimuths of the Sun and Moon with be 18.4° on 30th August 2011. The distance will be nearly the same for other Pakistani cities/locations. Only the timings of sunset and moonset will be different.
Written By: Zain Ahmed