Qibla direction in Catacamas

How to face the Qibla in Catacamas

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 33.1° towards north: the result is the bearing of 56.9°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “east” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Catacamas.

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 Catacamas, 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

This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Catacamas to Mecca points to 86.8° (east), a full 29.9° away from the true Qibla of 56.9° (north-east). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 445 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Catacamas first heads north-east, and that is the direction to face.

How is the figure of 56.9° obtained? From the coordinates of Catacamas (14.8511° N, 85.8941° 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 Catacamas to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 12,852 km from Catacamas as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 12,663 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 15 h 37 min, although most pilgrims from Catacamas connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Catacamas run 9 hours behind Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Catacamas rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Catacamas

On 103 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Catacamas while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in May (31 days); for example, on 1 May 2027 it happens at 11:39 local time.

On 260 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 15:36.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Catacamas (03:18 and 03:27 local time), so they cannot be used here. Instead, on 13 January 2027 at 15:29 and 28 November 2027 at 15:09 the sun is over the point opposite the Kaaba, and every vertical shadow in Catacamas points straight to Mecca.

Catacamas compared with other cities

The Qibla here is practically the same as in Tegucigalpa (56.6°), and Mecca is 165 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Tocoa (93 km), prays towards 56.5°, a difference of 0.4°.

Among the 10 cities in Honduras on this site, Catacamas has the largest Qibla bearing; the smallest is 55.4° in Puerto Cortez. Across the country the direction varies by 1.5°.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Honduras.

Qibla in cities near Catacamas

• Tocoa56.5° · 93 km
• Olanchito56.3° · 101 km
• Danlí56.9° · 117 km
• La Ceiba56.1° · 139 km
• Tegucigalpa56.6° · 165 km
• Siguatepeque56.0° · 210 km