JEDDAH— On Monday morning, the sky over Makkah will witness the moon’s second alignment directly over the Holy Kaaba in 2026. The moon will reach a position very close to the zenith, appearing almost directly overhead at the Kaaba’s location, and will be visible to the naked eye. President of the Jeddah Astronomy Society Eng. Majed Abu Zahra said the moon will reach its peak altitude at 7:50:31 a.m. local time, rising to about 89.87 degrees and appearing almost directly overhead above the Holy Kaaba. He explained that the phenomenon occurs when the moon’s declination approaches Makkah’s latitude as it crosses the local meridian. He added that the moon will be in its waning crescent phase, with 31.8 percent of its disk illuminated. Abu Zahra said the sun’s presence in the sky makes the moon less prominent than during nighttime alignments. Nevertheless, its position can serve as a visual guide to the direction of Makkah from locations where the moon is visible above the horizon.
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