Qibla · Estado de Bahia
Qibla direction in Luis Eduardo Magalhães
To face the Kaaba in Luis Eduardo Magalhães, turn to 68.2° measured clockwise from true north, which is east (21.8° north of east). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 10,051 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Luis Eduardo Magalhães should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 68.2°, the Qibla of Luis Eduardo Magalhães. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 68° is all you need; a needle compass reads magnetic north and needs the local declination added or subtracted first.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Luis Eduardo Magalhães
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 21.8° towards north: the result is the bearing of 68.2°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 22° off.
Facing the Qibla is a condition of the prayer. Whoever prays inside the Sacred Mosque faces the Kaaba itself; whoever is far away, as in Luis Eduardo Magalhães, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. A nearby mosque is a handy reference, because its prayer rows were aligned when it was built. Once you know the direction at home, a discreet mark on the wall saves you from checking again.
Why a flat map shows a different direction
On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Luis Eduardo Magalhães to Mecca points to 68.3°, only 0.1° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 68.2° bearing remains the exact one.
How is the figure of 68.2° obtained? From the coordinates of Luis Eduardo Magalhães (12.0909° S, 45.7850° W) and of the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E), spherical trigonometry gives the starting bearing of the great circle joining them. Mosque architects and astronomical Qibla tables rely on exactly the same calculation.
Distance from Luis Eduardo Magalhães to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 10,051 km from Luis Eduardo Magalhães as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 10,105 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 12 h 19 min, although most pilgrims from Luis Eduardo Magalhães connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.
Clocks in Luis Eduardo Magalhães run 6 hours behind Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Luis Eduardo Magalhães rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Luis Eduardo Magalhães
On 192 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Luis Eduardo Magalhães 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 March 2027 it happens at 11:32 local time.
On 115 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 14:42.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | 14:42 |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 14:08 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 13:12 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 12:23 |
| 1 March 2027 | 11:32 | — |
| 15 March 2027 | 10:40 | — |
| 1 April 2027 | 09:37 | — |
| 15 April 2027 | 08:45 | — |
| 1 May 2027 | 07:47 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 06:59 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | — | — |
| 15 June 2027 | — | — |
| 1 July 2027 | — | — |
| 15 July 2027 | — | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 07:20 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | 08:06 | — |
| 1 September 2027 | 09:00 | — |
| 15 September 2027 | 09:42 | — |
| 1 October 2027 | 10:31 | — |
| 15 October 2027 | 11:15 | — |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 12:12 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 13:03 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 14:02 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | 14:42 |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Luis Eduardo Magalhães (06:18 and 06:27 local time), so they cannot be used here.
Luis Eduardo Magalhães compared with other cities
Compared with Brasília, 471 km away, the Qibla in Luis Eduardo Magalhães is turned 0.6° further anticlockwise (68.2° against 68.8°), and Mecca is 366 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Barreiras (87 km), prays towards 68.0°, a difference of 0.2°.
Across the 257 cities in Brazil on this site, the Qibla ranges from 66.1° in Maceió to 74.2° in Uruguaiana, a spread of 8.1°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Brazil.
Qibla in cities near Luis Eduardo Magalhães
- Barreiras68.0° · 87 km
- Palmas68.6° · 350 km
- Formosa, Goiás, Brazil68.6° · 418 km
- Planaltina, Goiás, Brazil68.7° · 423 km
- Planaltina, Federal District, Brazil68.7° · 441 km
- Brasília68.8° · 471 km
Qibla in Luis Eduardo Magalhães: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Luis Eduardo Magalhães?
It is 68.2° from true north, which is east: 21.8° north of east.
How far is Luis Eduardo Magalhães from Mecca?
10,051 km in a straight line over the globe, and 10,105 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Luis Eduardo Magalhães?
On 192 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Is the Qibla the same everywhere in Brazil?
No. It ranges from 66.1° to 74.2° across the country, so each city has its own bearing.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 68.2° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.