Qibla direction in Zumpango de Ocampo

How to face the Qibla in Zumpango de Ocampo

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 43.5° towards north: the result is the bearing of 46.5°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “east” would be off by more than 40°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Zumpango de Ocampo.

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 Zumpango de Ocampo, 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 Zumpango de Ocampo to Mecca points to 89.3° (east), a full 42.8° away from the true Qibla of 46.5° (north-east). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 844 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Zumpango de Ocampo first heads north-east, and that is the direction to face.

How is the figure of 46.5° obtained? From the coordinates of Zumpango de Ocampo (19.7967° N, 99.0995° 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 Zumpango de Ocampo to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 13,616 km from Zumpango de Ocampo as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 13,367 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 16 h 31 min, although most pilgrims from Zumpango de Ocampo connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Zumpango de Ocampo 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 Zumpango de Ocampo rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Zumpango de Ocampo

On 66 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Zumpango de Ocampo while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in June (30 days); for example, on 1 June 2027 it happens at 12:24 local time.

On 298 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 15:32.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Zumpango de Ocampo (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 Zumpango de Ocampo points straight to Mecca.

Zumpango de Ocampo compared with other cities

The Qibla here is practically the same as in Mexico City (46.6°), and Mecca is 30 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Cuautitlán Izcalli (21 km), prays towards 46.4°, the same bearing to the tenth of a degree.

Across the 99 cities in Mexico on this site, the Qibla ranges from 25.5° in Rosarito to 54.2° in Chetumal, a spread of 28.7°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Mexico.

Qibla in cities near Zumpango de Ocampo

• Cuautitlán Izcalli46.4° · 21 km
• Ecatepec de Morelos46.6° · 23 km
• Mexico City46.6° · 41 km
• Chicoloapan de Juárez46.8° · 47 km
• Delegación Cuajimalpa de Morelos46.5° · 52 km
• Pachuca46.6° · 52 km