UAE moon sighting on May 17: When is Eid Al Adha 2026; what astronomy centre says

Muslim countries around the world will observe the crescent moon of Dhul Hijjah 1447 AH on Sunday, May 17, 2026. UAE’s Astronomy Centre has said that crescent visibility on that day will be possible using telescopes from East Asia, South Africa, and southern South America, while naked-eye visibility will be possible from Central and Western Asia, North Africa, and most of the Americas.

Since crescent visibility will be possible from parts of the Islamic world on Sunday, it is expected that Monday, May 18, will mark the beginning of the month of Dhul Hijjah, and that Wednesday, May 27, 2026, will be the first day of Eid Al Adha in nearly all Islamic countries, Astronomy Centre said.

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Regarding the crescent’s position on May 17, in several Arab and other cities, the topocentric lunar calculations at sunset are as follows, according to the Astronomy Centre:

• In Jakarta, the moon will set 26 minutes after sunset, and its age will be 15 hours and 36 minutes. Crescent visibility there will be possible only with a telescope.

• In Abu Dhabi, the moon will set 58 minutes after sunset, and its age will be 18 hours and 45 minutes.

• In Mecca, the moon will set 58 minutes after sunset, and its age will be 19 hours and 22 minutes.

• In Amman and Jerusalem, the moon will set 69 minutes after sunset, and its age will be 19 hours and 55 minutes.

• In Cairo, the moon will set 67 minutes after sunset, and its age will be 20 hours.

• In Rabat, the moon will set 79 minutes after sunset, and its age will be 22 hours and 6 minutes.

The crescent is expected to be relatively easy to observe with the naked eye in Abu Dhabi, Mecca, Amman, Jerusalem, Cairo, and Rabat.

To better understand these figures, it should be noted that the shortest lunar lag time (the duration the moon remains above the horizon after sunset) for a crescent ever observed with the naked eye was 29 minutes. Likewise, the youngest crescent ever observed with the naked eye was 15 hours and 33 minutes old.

However, exceeding these values alone does not guarantee visibility, since crescent visibility also depends on other factors such as its angular distance from the sun and its altitude above the horizon at the time of observation.

The map below illustrates the visibility zones of the Dhul Hijjah crescent on May 17, across different parts of the world as follows:

• Red areas: Crescent visibility is impossible because the moon sets before the sun and/or because conjunction occurs after sunset.

• Uncolored areas: Crescent visibility is impossible, whether by telescope or naked eye.

• Blue areas: Crescent visibility is possible only using a telescope.

• Pink areas: Crescent visibility is possible using a telescope, and it may be visible to the naked eye under perfectly clear atmospheric conditions and by an experienced observer.

• Green areas: Crescent visibility is possible with the naked eye.

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