Muslims pray 5 times a day. The times of each prayer vary from place to place and from day to day. It is vital that Muslims perform these prayers at the correct time.
The 5 prayers are described below:
Fajr:
Starts at dawn or morning twilight
Ends just before sunrise
Zohar:
Starts at approximately 5 minutes after Zawaal
Ends at start of Asar time
Asar:
The start of Asar is dependant upon the length of the shadow that is cast by an object.
Different schools use different criteria.
Ends just before sunset
Maghrib:
Starts at sunset
Ends at the start of Isha (i.e. when there is reddishness in the sky)
Isha:
Starts after dusk
Ends when the evening twilight disappears (i.e. when it first starts to get light)
To determine Isha and Fajr calculations, one needs to calculate the time when the sun is at a certain distance below the horizon. The twilight angle is used for this purpose and it is defined as the angle in degrees of the sun below the horizon, when total darkness begins or ends.
Some organizations' use a fixed time after Maghrib to determine the start of Isha time.
Several standards have been established for determining Fajr and Isha prayer times.
| Region | Africa, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Malaysia, parts of the USA |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 19.5 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 17.5 |
| Region | Parts of the USA, Canada, parts of the UK |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 15 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 15 |
| Region | France |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 12, 15 or 18 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 12, 15 or 18 |
| Region | Singapore |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 20 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 18 |
| Region | Europe, Far East, parts of the USA |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 18 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 17 |
| Region | The Arabian Peninsula |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 18.5 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 90 minutes after Maghrib (120 minutes during Ramadan) |
| Region | Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Afghanistan, parts of Europe |
| Fajr – twilight angle | 18 |
| Isha – twilight angle | 18 |
