Qibla direction in Itajaí

How to face the Qibla in Itajaí

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 19.9° towards north: the result is the bearing of 70.1°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 20° 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 Itajaí, 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 Itajaí to Mecca points to 60.6° (north-east), 9.5° away from the correct 70.1°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 17 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 70.1° is the direction in which the shortest route from 26.9078° S, 48.6619° W 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 Itajaí to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 10,924 km from Itajaí as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 11,051 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 13 h 21 min, although most pilgrims from Itajaí connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Itajaí 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 Itajaí rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Itajaí

On 269 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Itajaí while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in January (31 days); for example, on 1 January 2027 it happens at 11:36 local time.

On 65 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 December (31 days), for instance on 1 January 2027 at 18:10.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Itajaí (06:18 and 06:27 local time), so they cannot be used here. Instead, on 13 January 2027 at 18:29 and 28 November 2027 at 18:09 the sun is over the point opposite the Kaaba, and every vertical shadow in Itajaí points straight to Mecca.

Itajaí compared with other cities

Compared with Brasília, 1,240 km away, the Qibla in Itajaí is turned 1.3° further clockwise (70.1° against 68.8°), and Mecca is 507 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Brusque (33 km), prays towards 70.2°, a difference of 0.1°.

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 Itajaí

• Brusque70.2° · 33 km
• Blumenau70.3° · 40 km
• Jaraguá do Sul70.2° · 62 km
• Joinville70.1° · 70 km
• Florianópolis70.2° · 77 km
• São José70.5° · 153 km