Qibla direction in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy

How to face the Qibla in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy

Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 35.3° towards north: the result is the bearing of 305.3°. Because the angle sits far from the cardinal points, a rough guess such as “west” would be off by more than 30°, which is why a measured bearing matters in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy.

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 Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy, 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

This is a place where maps mislead badly: a straight line on a flat map from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy to Mecca points to 251.0° (west), a full 54.3° away from the true Qibla of 305.3° (north-west). The map line keeps one compass heading and is 945 km longer than the great-circle route. Because the Earth is a sphere, the shortest way to Mecca from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy first heads north-west, and that is the direction to face.

The value of 305.3° is the direction in which the shortest route from 53.0639° N, 158.6275° 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 Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy to Mecca and Medina

Mecca is 9,865 km from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 9,588 km away. A direct flight would take roughly 12 h 06 min, although most pilgrims from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy connect through Jeddah or Medina airport.

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

Finding the Qibla with the sun in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy

On 23 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy while it is well above the horizon. At that moment, facing the sun means facing Mecca. The effect is most frequent in June (21 days); for example, on 15 June 2027 it happens at 21:16 local time.

On 282 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 15 February 2027 at 09:56.

Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both happen at night in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy (21:18 and 21:27 local time), so they cannot be used here.

Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy compared with other cities

Compared with Moscow, 6,771 km away, the Qibla in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy is turned 129.0° further clockwise (305.3° against 176.4°), and Mecca is 6,043 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (1,319 km), prays towards 293.9°, a difference of 11.5°.

Among the 158 cities in Russia on this site, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy has the largest Qibla bearing; the smallest is 148.7° in Kaliningrad. Across the country the direction varies by 156.6°.

See all cities on the Qibla page for Russia.

Qibla in cities near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy

• Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk293.9° · 1,319 km
• Komsomolsk-on-Amur289.2° · 1,506 km
• Khabarovsk288.3° · 1,723 km
• Yakutsk280.3° · 1,968 km
• Blagoveshchensk282.4° · 2,150 km
• Ussuriysk287.2° · 2,203 km