The Ministry of Religion will hold an isbat session to determine 1 Shawwal 1447 H or Eid al-Fitr on March 19. So, what is the predicted position of the new moon when the isbat session is held later?
The prediction of the position of the new moon can be seen from the document ‘Information on Forecasts of the New Moon at Sunset on March 19 2026 Determining the Beginning of the Month of Shawwal 1447 H’ which was downloaded from the official BMKG website, Monday (9/3/2026). BMKG said March 19 2026 would be the time for conjunction.
“Geocentric conjunction or conjunction or ijtima’ is an event when the ecliptic longitude of the moon is the same as the ecliptic longitude of the sun and the observer is assumed to be at the center of the Earth. This event will occur again on Thursday, March 19 2026 AD, at 01.23.23 UT or Thursday, March 19 2026 AD, at 08.23.23 WIB or Thursday, March 19 2026 AD, at 09.23.23 WITA or Thursday, March 19 2026 AD, at 10.23.23 WIT,” said a statement from BMKG.
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BMKG said the synodic period of the month from the previous conjunction to the next conjunction is 19 days 13 hours 22 minutes. BMKG said the conjunction occurred before sunset
March 19 in all regions of Indonesia.
“Astronomically, the implementation of rukyat Hilal determines the beginning of the month of Shawwal 1447 H for those who apply rukyat to determine it after sunset on March 19 2026,” wrote BMKG.
The following is the forecast for the position of the new moon on March 19 2026 from BMKG:
The height of the crescent moon is the angle expressed from the projected position of the moon on the observed horizon to the position where the center of the lunar disk is located. The height of the Hilal in Indonesia at sunset on March 19 2026, ranges from 0.91 degrees in Merauke, Papua to 3.13 degrees in Sabang, Aceh.
Elongation is the angular distance between the center of the lunar disk and the center of the solar disk as observed by observers on the Earth’s surface. Geocentric elongation in Indonesia at sunset on March 19 2026, ranges from 4.54 degrees in Waris, Papua, to 6.1 degrees in Banda Aceh, Aceh.
Age of the Moon
The age of the moon is the difference between the time the sun sets and the time the conjunction occurs. The age of the moon in Indonesia at sunset on March 19 2026, ranges from 7.41 hours in Waris, Papua, to 10.44 hours in Banda Aceh, Aceh.
Apart from that, BMKG also said there was the potential for other astronomical objects when lunar observations were carried out on March 19. BMKG said that from sunset to moonset there is Saturn whose angular distance is smaller than 10 degrees from the moon.
Determination of Eid al-Fitr
The initial determination of Shawwal in Indonesia is carried out through an isbat session held by the Ministry of Religion. The Ministry of Religion has scheduled an isbat session to determine Eid 2026 on March 19.
The isbat session involved broad representation of the community, starting from Islamic mass organizations such as NU, Muhammadiyah, PERSIS, Al-Irsyad Al-Islamiyyah, Hidayatullah, and the Islamic Community Association (PUI), to experts in astronomy and astronomy from various institutions, such as BMKG, BRIN, Planetarium, and astronomical observatories.
Indonesia itself has used the standards or criteria agreed by the Minister of Religion Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore (MABIMS) in determining the crescent moon. Quoted from the Ministry’s website, the new MABIMS criteria governing the possibility of rukyat is considered to meet the requirements when the position of the crescent moon reaches a height of 3 degrees with an elongation angle of 6.4 degrees.
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Also watch the video “Isbat Session Results: Ramadan Starting February 19 2026”
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(haf/imk)
