New Crescent Society

New Crescent Society is a British grassroots astronomy network founded in 2016 by Imad Ahmed. The New Crescent Society is an organsation which celebrates the relationship between astronomy, faith and Islam, with a motto of 'connecting the community to the cosmos'. It has engaged in the British Islamic calendar debates to promote unity, by being the first group in the history of the British Muslims to build a nationwide network of naked-eye moonsighters who can observe and determine the start of each lunar month according to local lunar observations to manage the Islamic calendar within the British Isles. It promotes a "local-first" model where Muslims in Britain can establish the Islamic calendar by direct observation within the British Isles and completing 30 days when the moon is not seen, rather than following the calendar other countries. It is often referred to as the UK's leading Islamic Calendar.

History

The New Crescent Society was founded by Imad Ahmed in 2016 as an amateur astronomy club interested in the relationship between astronomy and Islam. It began its relationship with the Royal Observatory Greenwich 2017, launching the successful 'Astronomy and Islam' programme - a series of educational Planetarium shows, educational events and astronomy livestreams. The organization's main activities were lunar observations, training events in the history of astronomy and Islam, learning about Islami prayer times, and discussing the history of the Islamic calendar debates in the UK. During the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, observers kept up socially distanced photographic logs for a full year of continuous data. Testimonies via Zoom was also introduced around this time, something which is still streamed live to this day. By 2025, the Society marked its eighth year with over 100 monthly sighting attempts recorded, the integration of Met Office forecasts into its planning, and the documentation of one of the youngest ever crescents seen in the UK.

Impact

The New Crescent Society has helped dozens of UK mosques align their calendars with local sightings, and its work has been featured by BBC News, BBC One Show, New Scientist, and Al Jazeera for its "citizen-science Islam" approach. The group has also co-hosted the "Moon & Faith" exhibition at the Royal Greenwich Observatory alongside yearly Ramadan sightings. It also works closely with Cambridge University. The society had also provided expert advice on the size, angle and timing of the crescent moon to the Mayor of London assembly in assisting with its "London Eye Eid light up.". The UK Royal charter affiliated The Scout Association also worked with the society to make sighting the crescent moon one of its child friendly outdoor activities.

1447 Islamic calendar dates (UK)

The table below gives the Islamic months for 1447 AH in the United Kingdom according to the New Crescent Society's local naked-eye moonsighting criteria. Dates are projected from crescent visibility data published by the HM Nautical Almanac Office who work directly with NCS & ICOUK to provide predictions that can be used by Government Departments, Islamic Intuitions and schools/employers.

Key Islamic observances in 1447 AH (UK)

Observance	Islamic date	UK date	Notes
Islamic New Year	1 Muharram	27 June 2025	Marks the beginning of the lunar year.
Day of ʿĀshūrāʾ	10 Muharram	6 July 2025	Day of fasting and remembrance of Prophet Musa and the martyrdom of Imam Hussayn.
Mawlid al-Nabi	12 Rabi al-Awwal	7 September 2025	Celebrated by some as the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Not celebrated by Orthodox Sunni communities
Start of Ramadan	1 Ramadan	19 February 2026	Beginning of the month of fasting.
Laylat al-Qadr	27 Ramadan	16–17 March 2026	The Night of Power; considered the most blessed night of the year.
Eid al-Fitr	1 Shawwāl	21 March 2026	Feast marking the end of Ramadan.
Day of Arafah	9 Dhu'l-Hijjah	26 May 2026	Day before Eid al-Adha; recommended for fasting.
Eid al-Adha	10 Dhu'l-Hijjah	27 May 2026	Feast of Sacrifice.

Criticism and debate

Some scholars believe that following moon sightings from countries like Morocco or Saudi Arabia helps maintain global unity among Muslims. On the other hand, some astronomers say the New Crescent Society is too cautious for not accepting sightings detected only by CCD equipment. The Society's view is that traditional Islamic rulings prioritise either direct sighting of the crescent or completing thirty days, and while optical tools can help locate the moon, they insist that a naked-eye sighting is still required which aligns with the mainstream Sunni Islamic View.

Objectives

The New Crescent Society is an organisation which celebrates the relationship between astronomy, faith and Islam. It hopes to bring unity amongst the Muslim community in the UK about the calendar debates by forging a path based on a position which is closest to the sunnah, and is acceptable by all: local naked eye moon sighting, as was traditionally done. It trains volunteers, keeps a record of sightings, and shares clear calendars so communities can start Ramadan and Eid together. The group also creates simple guides to help people learn about the Islamic lunar calendar.