Qibla direction in Pointe-Noire

How to face the Qibla in Pointe-Noire

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards east and move a further 44.7° towards north: the result is the bearing of 45.3°. 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 Pointe-Noire.

Scholars agree that someone who can see the Kaaba must face it exactly, while someone far away faces its direction (jihat al-Ka‘bah) as precisely as reasonably possible. If a mosque is nearby, its mihrab and prayer lines are the easiest reference, since they were set when the building was laid out. At home, mark the direction once with tape or a small arrow so the whole family prays the same way.

Why a flat map shows a different direction

On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Pointe-Noire to Mecca points to 46.3°, only 1.0° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 45.3° bearing remains the exact one.

The angle on this page is the initial bearing of the great circle from 4.7761° S, 11.8635° E to the Kaaba (21.4225° N, 39.8262° E). It is the method used by mosque architects and by every serious Qibla calculator, and it gives one exact answer for each point on Earth.

Distance from Pointe-Noire to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 4,216 km from Pointe-Noire as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 4,426 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 5 h 28 min, although most pilgrims from Pointe-Noire connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

Clocks in Pointe-Noire run 2 hours behind Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Pointe-Noire rather than those of Mecca.

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Pointe-Noire

On 211 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Pointe-Noire 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 15 March 2027 it happens at 12:11 local time.

On 154 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 13:37.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Pointe-Noire: at 10:18 and 10:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Pointe-Noire compared with other cities

Compared with Brazzaville, 383 km away, the Qibla in Pointe-Noire is turned 3.1° further clockwise (45.3° against 42.1°), and Mecca is 303 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Dolisie (110 km), prays towards 45.0°, a difference of 0.3°.

Among the 4 cities in the Republic of the Congo on this site, Pointe-Noire has the largest Qibla bearing; the smallest is 42.1° in Brazzaville. Across the country the direction varies by 3.1°.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Republic of the Congo.

Qibla in cities near Pointe-Noire

• Dolisie45.0° · 110 km
• Nkayi44.4° · 171 km
• Brazzaville42.1° · 383 km