Suhail star to rise on Saturday, marking end of extreme heat of peak summer

Published: 22 August 2024

Suhail is the second brightest star after the star Sirius, and it is about 300 light years away from us

Agencies

DOHA: Qatar Calendar House announced that the date of the rising of the Suhail star this year in the sky of the State of Qatar will be next Saturday, corresponding to Aug. 24, which marks the beginning of the Suhail season in Qatar and most of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Symbolically, it marks the end of the extreme heat of peak summer and heralds the approach of cooler conditions.

An astronomy expert at Qatar Calendar House, Dr. Bashir Marzouq said that the residents of the State of Qatar will be able to see the star Suhail with the naked eye towards the southern horizon of the sky of the State of Qatar during the first week of next September, and it can be identified by the brightest star at night (the Sirius star).

He added that the rising of the Suhail star on Aug. 24 of each year is the beginning of the Suhail season and the Suhail year, which is 365 or 366 days long, and includes a group of seasons such as Al-Murabba’iyah, Al-Wasmi, Al-Safri, and Al-Kanna.

The Suhail star is the brightest star in the constellation of the ship’s base, and it is the second brightest star that we see in the night sky after the star Sirius, and it is about 300 light years away from us.

According to Arab folklore, the night “cools down” when “Suhail rises”.

The star will be visible for up to eight months, starting from late August and continuing throughout winter.