Qibla direction in Townsville

How to face the Qibla in Townsville

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 16.0° towards north: the result is the bearing of 286.0°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 16° off.

The scholars distinguish two cases: the one who sees the Kaaba aims at the building itself, while the one who cannot see it, as anywhere in Townsville, aims at its direction as well as he reasonably can. Comparing with the mihrab of a local mosque is a quick way to confirm the result. If you travel or move house, check the angle again, since it changes from place to place.

Why a flat map shows a different direction

A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Townsville to Mecca points to 291.2° (west), 5.3° away from the correct 286.0°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 18 km longer than the true shortest route. The Qibla follows the great circle, the shortest path on the curved Earth, which is why the bearing differs.

The value of 286.0° is the direction in which the shortest route from 19.2664° S, 146.8057° E sets off towards the Kaaba at 21.4225° N, 39.8262° E. Every accurate Qibla calculator, and the plans of well-oriented mosques, arrive at the same angle for this point.

Distance from Townsville to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 12,471 km from Townsville as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 12,565 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 15 h 10 min, although most pilgrims from Townsville connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Townsville run 7 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Townsville rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Townsville

On 184 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Townsville while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in March (31 days); for example, on 1 February 2027 it happens at 12:55 local time.

On 89 days the sun stands exactly opposite the Qibla: then the shadow of any vertical object, a pole, a door frame or a plumb line, points straight towards Mecca. This is most frequent in January (31 days), for instance on 1 January 2027 at 07:59.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Townsville (19:18 and 19:27 local time), so they cannot be used here. Instead, on 14 January 2027 at 07:29 and 29 November 2027 at 07:09 the sun is over the point opposite the Kaaba, and every vertical shadow in Townsville points straight to Mecca.

Townsville compared with other cities

Compared with Canberra, 1,796 km away, the Qibla in Townsville is turned 8.2° further clockwise (286.0° against 277.8°), and Mecca is 597 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Cairns (283 km), prays towards 287.1°, a difference of 1.1°.

Across the 21 cities in Australia on this site, the Qibla ranges from 275.0° in Hobart to 295.5° in Mandurah, a spread of 20.5°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Australia.

Qibla in cities near Townsville

• Cairns287.1° · 283 km
• Sunshine Coast280.7° · 1,043 km
• Toowoomba280.6° · 1,061 km
• Brisbane280.3° · 1,111 km
• Logan City280.1° · 1,131 km
• Gold Coast279.8° · 1,182 km