Qibla direction in Magnitogorsk

How to face the Qibla in Magnitogorsk

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards south and move a further 32.1° towards west: the result is the bearing of 212.1°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “south” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Magnitogorsk.

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 Magnitogorsk, 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

A straight line drawn on a flat (Mercator) map from Magnitogorsk to Mecca points to 204.8° (south-west), 7.2° away from the correct 212.1°. That map line is a rhumb line: it keeps the same compass heading all the way, but it is 7 km longer than the true shortest route. The Qibla follows the great circle, the shortest path on the curved Earth, which is why the bearing differs.

The value of 212.1° is the direction in which the shortest route from 53.3981° N, 59.0066° E 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 Magnitogorsk to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 3,911 km from Magnitogorsk as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 3,602 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 5 h 06 min, although most pilgrims from Magnitogorsk connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

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

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Magnitogorsk

On 365 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Magnitogorsk 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 15:27 local time.

The sun is never opposite the Qibla of Magnitogorsk during daylight, so the shadow method does not apply here; the left-hand column is the one to use.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Magnitogorsk: at 14:18 and 14:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.

Magnitogorsk compared with other cities

Compared with Moscow, 1,397 km away, the Qibla in Magnitogorsk is turned 35.7° further clockwise (212.1° against 176.4°), and Mecca is 89 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Miass (197 km), prays towards 212.5°, a difference of 0.4°.

Across the 158 cities in Russia on this site, the Qibla ranges from 148.7° in Kaliningrad to 305.3° in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, a spread of 156.6°. That is too large to use one national direction, so each city has its own bearing.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Russia.

Qibla in cities near Magnitogorsk

• Miass212.5° · 197 km
• Zlatoust211.8° · 202 km
• Sterlitamak207.2° · 204 km
• Salavat207.3° · 205 km
• Orsk213.0° · 243 km
• Ufa206.5° · 248 km