How Does an Astronaut Face Mecca? Monday, October 01, 2007

Wired has a very interesting article about Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, Malaysia's first astronaut, who plans on spending nine days aboard the International Space Station during the month of Ramadan. Shukor is a Muslim, and as such, must face Mecca five times each day, when he prays. This begs an important question: which way does one face when the qibla (the direction towards Mecca) can change up to 180 degrees during a single prayer?

Angkasa, Malaysia's space program, called upon 150 Muslim scholars to answer this and other questions relating to performing proper worship while in space. The group produced a document covering everything from how to perform ritual ablutions aboard the space station to how to prostrate oneself in zero-gravity. You can read it for yourself here (Word document).