The International Astronomy Centre has explained the science…

Holiday dates for Eid Al Fitr 2025 have been announced for both the public and private sector, and while we know when they’re going to begin, we don’t know when they will end as this all depends on when the Shawwal moon is sighted and when Eid Al Fitr actually falls.

The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) has announced that private sector employees in the UAE will get a public holiday from Sunday, March 30 to Tuesday, April 1, 2025 on the occasion of Eid Al Fitr. These are the confirmed days.

However, the Ministry also clarified that if the month of Ramadan concludes in the 30th day, the holiday will be extended to Wednesday, April 2, 2025.

In short, if the moon sighting committee spots the crescent on March 29, we will get a four-day break (including the weekend) from March 30 to April 1. If Ramadan completes 30 days, we will get a five day break (including the weekend) until Wednesday, April 2, 2025.

The International Astronomy Centre has revealed that the crescent moon of Shawwal will be impossible to sight “using any observation methods, including the naked eye, telescopes, and astrophotography techniques” on Saturday, March 29, across all regions of the Arab and Islamic world.

This is because the moon will set before the sun, and the conjunction will occur after sunset. As such, Ramadan will likely extend to 30 days, making Eid Al Fitr fall on Monday, March 31. An earlier calculation of the Dubai Astronomy Group had also reported a likely completion of 30 days.

But – there is a technicality. Since the conjunction will take place before sunset in some central and western parts of the Islamic world,  this will allow the moon to set after sunset and some countries may choose to declare Eid Al Fitr on Sunday, March 30, based on their traditional moon-sighting practices.

The science…


Basically, a partial solar eclipse is expected to occur during midday on Saturday, which will be be visible in parts of the western Arab world such as Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. A solar eclipse serves as direct evidence of conjunction and confirms that the crescent cannot be seen at the time or shortly after.

The Dubai Astronomy Group also elaborated that the moon may only be visible using a telescope from some central and northern parts of the Americas and sighting even that will be extremely difficult in the eastern part of the continent, even with a telescope. The crescent will not be visible to the naked eye except in parts of the Pacific Ocean west of the United States.

So, how exactly do we decide?

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Islamically, this is based on the geographical location of where you live. Folks are expected to follow the geographical norms and moon-sighting practices of the region they live in and depending on where that is located, this may vary between 29 and 30 days, as explained by the experts.

Essentially, keep an eye out on your own sky and stay tuned with your local authorities to find out what they’re saying.

@astronomycentre, @dubaiastronomy

Images: Getty