The Implementation of Hybrid Observation Technique of Hilal (HOTOH)

In 2022, Malaysians were unexpectedly informed that Eid al-Fitr would be celebrated on 2nd May, disrupting plans based on the anticipated 3rd May date.This highlighted the need for better crescent moon sighting methods.This study aims to enhance new crescent detection accuracy through advanced image processing techniques using Contrast Limited Adaptive Histogram Equalization (CLAHE) for contrast enhancement, Bilateral Filter (BF) for denoising and Maximally Stable Extremal Regions (MSER) combined with Circular Hough Transform (CHT) for precise detection.The research showed significant improvements of using CLAHE for enhancing image contrast, BF for reducing the noise and MSER with CHT for ensuring accurate crescent detection.These techniques greatly improved crescent visibility and detection accuracy, preventing disruptions like the 2022 Eid announcement.This approach promises better predictability for future cultural and religious events.