JEDDAH — This year, the world is witnessing a moment of astronomical coincidence, as the first of Ramadan in the Hijri calendar coincides with March 1, 2025 in the Gregorian calendar astronomically, according to Eng. Majed Abu Zahra, president of the Jeddah Astronomical Society. He said that the Hijri calendar is based on the lunar cycle, as each month begins with the sighting of the crescent moon. The Hijri year consists of 354 or 355 days, which makes it about 10 to 12 days shorter than the Gregorian year. The Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar that depends on the earth's rotation on its axis around the sun, and its number of days is 365 or 366 in a leap year such as 2024, which affects its synchronization with the Hijri calendar. Abu Zahra pointed out that since the Hijri year is shorter than the Gregorian year, the Hijri months gradually recede in the Gregorian calendar by 10 to 12 days annually. As a result, the Hijri months pass through all the seasons of the year during a cycle of approximately 33 years. "The precise synchronization - as in the case of Ramadan 1, 1446 corresponding to March 1, 2025 - only occurs when the lunar and solar cycles are in harmony, and this alignment reflects the mathematical and astronomical precision in the movement of the moon and the earth. Such synchronization does not occur often, but it returns in a similar way approximately every 33 years, albeit in different months," he said while noting that this unique phenomenon in 2025 is an important reminder of the flexibility and change of time. "This also highlights the compatibility between the astronomical cycles on which all calendar systems are built," he added.
