Qibla direction in Puente Alto

How to face the Qibla in Puente Alto

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 8.1° towards north: the result is the bearing of 81.9°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at east would leave you about 8° 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 Puente Alto, 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

This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Puente Alto to Mecca points to 62.4° (north-east), a full 19.5° away from the true Qibla of 81.9° (east). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 76 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Puente Alto first heads east, and that is the direction to face.

The value of 81.9° is the direction in which the shortest route from 33.6117° S, 70.5758° 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 Puente Alto to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 13,143 km from Puente Alto as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 13,276 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 15 h 58 min, although most pilgrims from Puente Alto connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Puente Alto run 6 hours behind Mecca in winter and 7 hours behind Mecca in summer, because of daylight saving time. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Puente Alto rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Puente Alto

On 201 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Puente Alto 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 11:16 local time.

On 135 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 18:11.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Puente Alto (05:18 and 05:27 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 Puente Alto points straight to Mecca.

Puente Alto compared with other cities

The Qibla here is practically the same as in Santiago, Santiago Metropolitan, Chile (81.8°), and Mecca is 4 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Santiago, Santiago Metropolitan, Chile (18 km), prays towards 81.8°, the same bearing to the tenth of a degree.

Across the 24 cities in Chile on this site, the Qibla ranges from 74.3° in Arica to 92.9° in Punta Arenas, a spread of 18.6°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Chile.

Qibla in cities near Puente Alto

• Santiago, Santiago Metropolitan, Chile81.8° · 18 km
• Lampa81.8° · 46 km
• Colina81.7° · 46 km
• Rancagua82.3° · 64 km
• Viña del Mar82.0° · 112 km
• Curicó83.0° · 164 km