Qibla · Muhafazat Hadramaout
Qibla direction in Mukalla
To face the Kaaba in Mukalla, turn to 309.2° measured clockwise from true north, which is north-west (39.2° north of west). The Sacred Mosque in Mecca lies 1,245 km away along the shortest path over the globe, and this is the direction the mihrabs of the mosques in Mukalla should follow.
Line up the top of your phone or compass with the green needle: it marks 309.2°, the Qibla of Mukalla. Phone compasses usually display true north, so a reading of 309° is all you need; a needle compass reads magnetic north and needs the local declination added or subtracted first.
Find the Qibla with your phone
How to face the Qibla in Mukalla
Stand where you will pray and find north first. Then turn towards west and move a further 39.2° towards north: the result is the bearing of 309.2°. 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 Mukalla.
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 Mukalla, faces its direction and makes a sincere effort to be accurate. Any of the mosques of Mukalla is a handy reference, because the 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
On a flat (Mercator) map, the straight line from Mukalla to Mecca points to 307.9°, only 1.3° away from the true Qibla. Here the two methods practically agree, so a map gives a usable first idea, although the 309.2° bearing remains the exact one.
How is the figure of 309.2° obtained? From the coordinates of Mukalla (14.5425° N, 49.1242° 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 Mukalla to Mecca and Medina
Mecca is 1,245 km from Mukalla as the crow flies, and Medina, the city of the Prophet ﷺ, is 1,486 km away. The distance is short enough that many pilgrims from Mukalla travel to the Hijaz by road.
Clocks in Mukalla run the same time as Mecca all year. Prayer times, however, depend on the sun at your own location, so always use the prayer times of Mukalla rather than those of Mecca.
Finding the Qibla with the sun in Mukalla
On 106 days of 2027, the sun passes exactly through the Qibla direction of Mukalla 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 11:43 local time.
On 259 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 08:43.
| Date | Sun in the Qibla direction (face the sun) | Sun opposite (shadows point to the Qibla) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2027 | — | 08:43 |
| 15 January 2027 | — | 09:00 |
| 1 February 2027 | — | 09:27 |
| 15 February 2027 | — | 09:50 |
| 1 March 2027 | — | 10:13 |
| 15 March 2027 | — | 10:34 |
| 1 April 2027 | — | 11:00 |
| 15 April 2027 | — | 11:20 |
| 1 May 2027 | 11:43 | — |
| 15 May 2027 | 12:03 | — |
| 1 June 2027 | 12:22 | — |
| 15 June 2027 | 12:32 | — |
| 1 July 2027 | 12:35 | — |
| 15 July 2027 | 12:27 | — |
| 1 August 2027 | 12:08 | — |
| 15 August 2027 | — | 11:46 |
| 1 September 2027 | — | 11:13 |
| 15 September 2027 | — | 10:44 |
| 1 October 2027 | — | 10:11 |
| 15 October 2027 | — | 09:42 |
| 1 November 2027 | — | 09:11 |
| 15 November 2027 | — | 08:51 |
| 1 December 2027 | — | 08:36 |
| 15 December 2027 | — | 08:34 |
Twice a year the sun passes directly over the Kaaba, on 28 May 2027 and 16 July 2027. Both moments are in daylight in Mukalla: at 12:18 and 12:27 local time, face the sun and you face the Qibla exactly, anywhere in the city.
Mukalla compared with other cities
Compared with Sanaa, 536 km away, the Qibla in Mukalla is turned 17.0° further anticlockwise (309.2° against 326.3°), and Mecca is 428 km farther away. The nearest city with its own Qibla page, Aden (483 km), prays towards 330.8°, a difference of 21.5°.
Among the 7 cities in Yemen on this site, Mukalla has the smallest Qibla bearing; the largest is 336.3° in Al Hudaydah. Across the country the direction varies by 27.1°.
See all cities on the Qibla page for Yemen.
Qibla in cities near Mukalla
Qibla in Mukalla: questions and answers
What is the Qibla direction in Mukalla?
It is 309.2° from true north, which is north-west: 39.2° north of west.
How far is Mukalla from Mecca?
1,245 km in a straight line over the globe, and 1,486 km to Medina.
When does the sun show the Qibla in Mukalla?
On 106 days of 2027 the sun stands in the Qibla direction; the table on this page gives the exact time for the 1st and 15th of each month.
Is the Qibla the same everywhere in Yemen?
No. It ranges from 309.2° to 336.3° across the country, so each city has its own bearing.
Does the Qibla change during the year?
No. The direction of 309.2° is fixed; only the times when the sun lines up with it change from day to day.