Qibla direction in Manp’o

How to face the Qibla in Manp’o

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 14.3° towards north: the result is the bearing of 284.3°. A small error of a few degrees is forgiven by most scholars, but aiming simply at west would leave you about 14° 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 Manp’o, 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 Manp’o to Mecca points to 254.9° (west), a full 29.4° away from the true Qibla of 284.3° (west). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 260 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Manp’o first heads west, and that is the direction to face.

How is the figure of 284.3° obtained? From the coordinates of Manp’o (41.1547° N, 126.2894° E) 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 Manp’o to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 8,176 km from Manp’o as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 7,984 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 10 h 07 min, although most pilgrims from Manp’o connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Manp’o run 6 hours ahead of Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Manp’o rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Manp’o

On 112 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Manp’o 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 18:50 local time.

On 231 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 March (31 days), for instance on 1 March 2027 at 07:39.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Manp’o: at 18:18 and 18:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Manp’o compared with other cities

The Qibla here is practically the same as in Pyongyang (284.6°), and Mecca is 15 km closer. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Kanggye (32 km), prays towards 284.6°, a difference of 0.2°.

Across the 27 cities in North Korea on this site, the Qibla ranges from 283.5° in Sinuiju to 286.3° in Chongjin, a spread of 2.8°. The difference is small, yet each city should still use its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for North Korea.

Qibla in cities near Manp’o

• Kanggye284.6° · 32 km
• Tŏkch’ŏn284.7° · 156 km
• Hyesan285.4° · 160 km
• Kaech’ŏn284.5° · 165 km
• Hamhung285.4° · 173 km
• Sunch’ŏn284.6° · 194 km