Bridging the Gap Between Science and Faith: Student Spotlight with Imad Ahmed

Today, Imad’s work is transforming how communities connect with astronomy and science, showing that the boundaries we place between subjects don’t have to exist and there is still room for genuine, philosophical debate.

Finding your place at university or in academia can feel like a huge crossroads. With so many options to choose from, how do you make the best decision or know what you will be interested in? Choosing between the arts and sciences can be daunting, but there are ways to experience both with some creativity and dedication.

Like many students, Imad faced a tough choice when deciding which path to take.

“Many people in Cambridge University today might have found themselves at a juncture when applying for a University course, or even when applying for their A Levels, asking themselves do I go into the arts and humanities or do I go into the sciences? And I found myself at that juncture. In that moment of my life, I chose to go down the humanities route.”

Imad studied history and English at Oxford University, followed by a masters in Islamic history, and later became a schoolteacher. However, the passion for science never truly faded.

“It didn’t mean my interest in science disappeared, it was always there. And today I reflect upon the fact that some of the great scientists were also philosophers, theologians, artists or poets… I didn’t realise at the time that we students can forge ways of learning that allow us to pursue the wonder and curiosity of learning in a multidisciplinary fashion. I thought I had to choose one or the other.”

“One of the great things about Cambridge is there is space for flexibility with the tripos system. I’m in the Divinity Faculty and every year there’s a few medics who come and join us because they intercalate in their third year. I think this ability to have multiple disciplines in your course in Cambridge is incredible and I really appreciate that.”

Imad’s research inspiration came from a real-world issue experienced during childhood growing up in East London, namely the confusion surrounding the dates of Ramadan and Eid. Because the UK has traditionally lacked a united moonsighting system, local mosques and families would often celebrate on different days based on which overseas country they followed, such as Saudi Arabia, Morocco, or South Africa.

While on holiday to Cape Town, South Africa, everything changed when Imad saw communities of Muslims gathering collectively on the beach to sight the moon together like a big festival.

“I thought, wow, why don’t we have this in the UK? What’s going on in the UK? Do we even look for the moon in the UK?”

Upon returning home, Imad enrolled in an astronomy course at the Royal Observatory Greenwich to re-engage with science, and founded the New Crescent Society which is now the largest amateur Muslim astronomy network in the country. This questioning of sighting the moon in the UK led Imad to apply to a PhD scholarship offered by the Divinity Faculty at the University of Cambridge, to research the lived experience of British Muslims across generations.

The New Crescent Society, credit Imad Ahmed

Through lengthy PhD research, public engagement and a network of moonsighters across cities like London, Cardiff, and Oxford, Imad found that the UK’s infamously cloudy weather wasn’t the real barrier.

“…the argument I make in my PhD is that it was never too cloudy… What we found is as long as you have people looking around the country and you have a good network, you can see the moon… moon sighting is a team sport.”

This unique academic environment has allowed Imad to consider science alongside important philosophical questions, some as fundamental as questioning time itself.

“Thinking about religious timekeeping is an amazing space because it’s a space where the exploration of the self and the exploration of the cosmos can take place in the same conversation… the depth of conversation that I have found in my research amongst the Muslim community is phenomenal…we are having debates about the nature of time. What is time? How do you define the boundaries of time? What’s the relationship between us and nature? What’s the relationship between us and science? How do we use astronomy or astronomical data to support our calendar? Is that something that we think is appropriate for us or not? The debate about the Islamic calendar in the UK actually creates this incredible community conversation.”

Following his research and public engagement events, largely promoted through social media,  the attention of major global institutions was captured. Imad has collaborated with the Natural History Museum, the National Space Centre, and Meta. Imad even trains TikTok staff on Islam and astronomy and runs a planetarium show at the Royal Observatory that has been running for eight years.

One of his most remarkable experiences happened at one of the UK’s most famous ancient monuments.

“The last one was Stonehenge and that was amazing… I wrote an article about Stonehenge having lunar alignments, but also the Muslim holy site, the Kaaba, having similar or identical lunar alignments. I was contacted by English Heritage and they invited me to take a group to observe the alignment of the crescent on Stonehenge and they allowed us into the stone circle… To use a very bad pun, it’s been an out of this world experience.”

Imad Ahmed teaching at a New crescent moon event at Stonehenge, Wiltshire.
Photograph ©Sam Frost

Today, Imad is a lead at the Moonsighters Academy, a public astronomy programme run by the University of Cambridge in partnership with the University of Leeds. The academy trains 38 diverse community leaders, not just including imams but also scout leaders and hiking club founders, with an exact equal split of 19 men and 19 women.

“I think what we’re doing through Moonsighters Academy is redefining the relationship between communities and institutions. We have fostered an environment where participants can say academia works for me too, I also belong to the enterprise of science, the academy is a community to which I belong, and we can work together on solving problems which me and my community face too.”

When asked on advice for future generations, or for those thinking about the future, university, or how to combine your different interests, Imad believes the modern academic world is changing for the better to support multi-disciplinary minds.

“I think we’re moving towards a space in academia which is increasingly multidisciplinary, so bring your whole self to your studies… the more you bring your authentic self to your work, the more you will enjoy yourself, and the more you will be appreciated in a multidisciplinary world.”

And if you want to get into research? To not be afraid to reach out.

“I think try to be open, to be honest, and to connect with people. Being in academia is a bit like being an entrepreneur, so you have to make your own opportunities and connections…  take the opportunity to email someone whose work you like, or you can email a professor and say can I have a coffee with you? I want to talk to you about this thing I’m thinking about… academia is a place where people care about research, study, knowledge and changing people’s lives for the better.”

Find out more about the Moonsighters Academy and Imad’s research:

https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/guided-by-the-moon

https://www.cam.ac.uk/stories/changing-month-by-the-moon