# Can a Moon/Venus Conjunction Create an Islamic Star & Cresent Symbol?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-moon-venus-conjunction-create-an-islamic-star-cresent-symbol/475278>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 2, 2008, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-moon-venus-conjunction-create-an-islamic-star-cresent-symbol/475278 "2008-12-02T01:34:23Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![A\_Man\_A\_Plan\_A\_Canal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/839c29/32.png) [@A\_Man\_A\_Plan\_A\_Canal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Man_A_Plan_A_Canal)\
**Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-moon-venus-conjunction-create-an-islamic-star-cresent-symbol/475278/1 "2008-12-02T01:34:23Z")

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Hello, Dopers, AMAPAC here.

Seeing how this evening’s sky has a nice Moon/Venus/Jupiter conjunction (which looks sort of like a smiley face when viewed from the Southern Hemisphere), it made me wonder if Moon/Venus (or maybe Moon/Jupiter) could ever be in the right position to make an Islamic Star&Cresent symbol.

If a thin-cresent Moon could actually occult Venus at its mid-latitudes, that would make just exactly the sort of Star & Cresent symbol that is associated with Islam.

Thanks!..AMAPAC

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**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\
**Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-moon-venus-conjunction-create-an-islamic-star-cresent-symbol/475278/2 "2008-12-02T01:38:25Z")

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No, because the Moon is opaque.

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**Author:** ![A\_Man\_A\_Plan\_A\_Canal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/839c29/32.png) [@A\_Man\_A\_Plan\_A\_Canal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_Man_A_Plan_A_Canal)\
**Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-moon-venus-conjunction-create-an-islamic-star-cresent-symbol/475278/3 "2008-12-02T01:43:02Z")

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Of course I know the Moon is opaque. But if the Moon were occulting Venus, then Venus would become visible just as it cleared the Moon’s horizon.

I’ve seen renditions of the Star & Cresent with the star just outside the Moon’s visual circle, and this is what would be imitated by the Moon occulting Venus (or perhaps Jupiter).

The question is–can the cresent Moon occult Venus at its mid-latitudes?

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [December 2, 2008, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-a-moon-venus-conjunction-create-an-islamic-star-cresent-symbol/475278/4 "2008-12-02T02:56:24Z")

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No reason it couldn’t. In fact, folks in Europe did see an occultation, though I’m not sure where on the edge of the Moon it occurred.