When you're in orbit, which way is Mecca?

[dr. what]

New Scientist

Malaysia's National Space Agency is trying to determine how its astronaut candidates will practice Islam in space. Three of its four astronaut candidates are Muslim, and two will be selected for a future Russian space flight.

Once in their orbiting spacecraft, they will circle the Earth once every 90 minutes. Traditionally, Muslims pray five times per day, at times connected to the position of the Sun in the sky. This will make prayer observance a challenge if they accept a "day" as being just 90 minutes long.

A similar problem occurs for Muslims who live close to Earth's polar regions where there are long periods of daylight or darkness. Islamic legal scholars traditionally say that in such situations, a Muslim should pray as they would at a particular, relatively high latitude, even if they venture nearer the poles.

"Any legal scholar advising these astronauts would have to simply pick various times that would roughly correspond to their morning, noon, afternoon, sunset and night prayers," says Alan Godlas, a professor of religion at the University of Georgia, US.

Minor ablutions
Additionally, Muslims turn toward Mecca when they pray. Zooming around the Earth at 28,000 kilometres per hour might make pinpointing the exact location of Mecca pretty tricky. Godlas says that orienting oneself toward Earth might be good enough. "There are instances where the prophet indicated a wide swathe; kind of a general direction," Godlas says.

And Muslims have a cleansing ritual, known as ablutions, before prayer. But water is used sparingly in space. Godlas says astronauts could force water between their two hands and then moisten the body during a minor ablution.

On Earth, it is ideal to have water running along the arms from the faucet, but water does not flow downward in microgravity. Godlas says that when water is not available, scholars have determined a pure rock could be used to wipe the hands. The hands could then clean the forearms, face and feet.

Saudi Arabian astronaut Sultan Salman Al-Saud flew aboard the shuttle in 1985. He was scheduled to look out the shuttle's window to see the crescent of the new moon to mark the end of the Muslim religious holiday, Ramadan.

Electric menorah
About 150 scientists, astronauts, religious scholars and academics are expected to gather in Malaysia on 25 and 26 April for an "Islam and Life in Space" seminar.

People have found ways to celebrate other religions above Earth. Israel's first astronaut Ilan Ramon, who died in the shuttle Columbia accident, was not a religious Jew, but he ate some Kosher food aboard the shuttle and observed the Jewish Sabbath. But rather than observing Sabbath every seventh sundown, Ramon followed the timings on Earth.

Walter Sipes, chief of operational psychology at NASA's Johnson Space Center, says that a menorah (a Jewish candle holder) has not yet been requested for a long mission aboard the space station. It might be possible to send a menorah with little electric bulbs, he says.

Streaming religion
Christianity has had a long history in space. Of the 29 Apollo astronauts, 23 were Protestant and six were Catholic.

Buzz Aldrin, a Presbyterian, gave himself Holy Communion once his lunar lander touched down on the Moon. And while circling the Moon during the Apollo 8 mission, Frank Borman apologised to his Episcopal congregation because he would not make it back to Earth in time to be a lay reader on Christmas Eve. Borman and his crew did read from the book of Genesis.

Now, if astronauts request it, NASA can send up streaming video of religious services. There is also a Christmas tree on the International Space Station. "For some, religion is very comforting and we certainly want to respect that," Sipes told New Scientist.

[Admiral Valdemar]

Am I the only one who finds this thing hilarious? It makes me wonder what'll happen when we reach further to the stars. Ah, how challenging it is to have such antiquated traditions in this day and age.

[Shroom Man 777]

This is all I have to say about that:

[Wicked Pilot]

How would the women astronaughts handle zero G? Wouldn't their burkas float up exposing their naughty regions?

[Lord Zentei]

How would the women astronaughts handle zero G? Wouldn't their burkas float up exposing their naughty regions?

They will presumably have to use bracers of some kind.

[Edi]

Am I the only one who finds this thing hilarious? It makes me wonder what'll happen when we reach further to the stars. Ah, how challenging it is to have such antiquated traditions in this day and age.

Yeah, well, consider Ramadan: No eating between sunrise and sunset. So what happens when Ramadan is in the middle of summer and you're someplace like Lapland where the sun doesn't fucking set at all for three months, or you only have an hour or two at most of "night" (if you can call it that)? There's a Pakistani girl in my class who I've talked with about this, and she said that when Ramadan happens during summer, her whole family goes to Pakistan or some other place where the days are short enough that you can actually survive it. Because she said the teachings about it are so strict that you can't get around them by e.g. applying the sunrise/sunset times of a more southerly latitude.

Edi

[Darth Servo]

Oh for heaven's sake. Mulsims in the U.S. don't exactly get out their compass and calculate the exact direction to Mecca, do they?

[Edi]

Oh for heaven's sake. Mulsims in the U.S. don't exactly get out their compass and calculate the exact direction to Mecca, do they?

No, because I suppose most of them would do at least their main prayers in mosques, which usually have the direction to Mecca clearly marked. The five times daily prayers are recommended, but not necessarily required, unless we're talking about shitholes like Afghanistan under the Taliban.

Edi

[Nephtys]

This reminds me a lot of a B5 season 1 ep, when G'Kar had to practice a religious ritual once a year at sunrise over Narn. Only, he was on Babylon 5, some 60 lightyears away. He got all angry that he couldn't do it, until Sinclair pointed out that he's still recieving Narn sunlight, from 60 years ago.

Just point in any direction. Prayers are affected by gravity, I'm sure.

[Darth Servo]

Just point in any direction. Prayers are affected by gravity, I'm sure.

I'm not sure. Afterall, the shortest direction to Mecca in Hawaii would be almost straight down. Which direction would someone pray on the exact opposite side of the world (approx 160W, 20S; never mind that this is in the middle of the pacific ocean).

[defanatic]

Put their hands on the ground, and push their knees up a wall, so they are facing straight down. That way, they'll be facing Mecca. Hurrah!

[Admiral Valdemar]

Better pray fast, Mecca won't be sitting still for long.

[Crossroads Inc.]

This reminds me a lot of a B5 season 1 ep, when G'Kar had to practice a religious ritual once a year at sunrise over Narn. Only, he was on Babylon 5, some 60 lightyears away. He got all angry that he couldn't do it, until Sinclair pointed out that he's still recieving Narn sunlight, from 60 years ago.

Thats Fraking awesome


Oh, and this is just silly all different ways.. really it is THAT important for these people?

[Aeolus]

Am I the only one who finds this thing hilarious? It makes me wonder what'll happen when we reach further to the stars. Ah, how challenging it is to have such antiquated traditions in this day and age.

Once your far enough out it's easy just pray towards the Earth.

[Aeolus]

This reminds me a lot of a B5 season 1 ep, when G'Kar had to practice a religious ritual once a year at sunrise over Narn. Only, he was on Babylon 5, some 60 lightyears away. He got all angry that he couldn't do it, until Sinclair pointed out that he's still recieving Narn sunlight, from 60 years ago.

Thats Fraking awesome


Oh, and this is just silly all different ways.. really it is THAT important for these people?

Yes it is.

[Patrick Degan]

Spacecraft launch eastward as it is to take advantage of Earth's rotational slingshot to reach orbit. It should not be all that difficult an exercise to determine the right direction for Mecca from an orbital position or to work out a prayer schedule.

[Old Plympto]

Schedule shouldn't be a problem. The rule is when you get on an aircraft you're locked into your departure point's time zone. When you arrive at your destination then you synchromize yourself into the destination's local schedule. Should be the same for orbital excursions too.

Direction of Mecca should be the same as it is on the ground... as long as you're facing it along the 2-dimensional plane of your body's vertical axis. Hell, it'd be easier since it's zero-g.

[bilateralrope]

Am I the only one who finds this thing hilarious? It makes me wonder what'll happen when we reach further to the stars. Ah, how challenging it is to have such antiquated traditions in this day and age.

Once your far enough out it's easy just pray towards the Earth.

Ok, they are on a planet with approxamitely earth gravity. Earth (well, earths sun should be close enough) will be moving in the sky as the planet rotates. Sometimes its directly underfoot, sometimes directly overhead, or any point inbetween.

How could they then build a mosque which allows them to face towards Earth when praying when earth could be at any point in the sky. To me it seems there would have to be many moving parts to do this.

Yeah, well, consider Ramadan: No eating between sunrise and sunset. So what happens when Ramadan is in the middle of summer and you're someplace like Lapland where the sun doesn't fucking set at all for three months, or you only have an hour or two at most of "night" (if you can call it that)? There's a Pakistani girl in my class who I've talked with about this, and she said that when Ramadan happens during summer, her whole family goes to Pakistan or some other place where the days are short enough that you can actually survive it. Because she said the teachings about it are so strict that you can't get around them by e.g. applying the sunrise/sunset times of a more southerly latitude.

Lets make the planet have a week to rotate once and see how they do shall we ?

[Old Plympto]

Ok, they are on a planet with approxamitely earth gravity. Earth (well, earths sun should be close enough) will be moving in the sky as the planet rotates. Sometimes its directly underfoot, sometimes directly overhead, or any point inbetween.

How could they then build a mosque which allows them to face towards Earth when praying when earth could be at any point in the sky. To me it seems there would have to be many moving parts to do this.

My guess would be the mosque will have no preset direction built into its construction, a total paradigm shift from Earth mosques. There will be time table that tells you which direction to face at what time of the day.

Just like on Earth one would not be facing Mecca in 3 dimensional space, but really on the 2 dimensional map. Even on Earth a Muslim might be praying towards Mecca with it being underfoot in 3D space. I would describe as the heading is actually any direction in a 2D plane along your body's vertical axis facing forward.

On another planet if you were using the Trekverse directional convention of "x degrees mark y degrees" where x is the direction on the horizontal plane and y is the direction along the vertical, it doesn't matter what y is as long as x is headed toward Earth.

[Netko]

Oh, and this is just silly all different ways.. really it is THAT important for these people?

Yes it is.

Actualy, knowing some liberal muslims, it really isn't. Most of them go to the mosque only over the weekend, and maybe do one prayer a day (modern life simply not allowing them 5 times a day to stop, drop what they are doing and pray). Now, I can see how having all of this figured out would be in the intrest of the space agency of a muslim country, however I think they are doing it more because of public appearances and goodwill from the science distrusting religious establishment. And just in case they do somehow get a fundie muslim as an astronaut. I'd wager that whatever they come up with, the astronauts will mostly do it for the same reasons instead of some deeply held belief (them being highly educated which has been correlated with lower religiousness).

[Fleet Admiral JD]

How would the women astronaughts handle zero G? Wouldn't their burkas float up exposing their naughty regions?

We do not allow women to be astronauts! They are obviously found to be inferior by the great man Allah!!1!

You know, I'm so glad that the scholars can interpret some of the books so widely. Now if only they can interpret it so that the radicals DON'T have to attack us.

[kheegster]

How would the women astronaughts handle zero G? Wouldn't their burkas float up exposing their naughty regions?

Muslim women who adhere to fundamentalist Islam wouldn't be allowed to leave the house let alone go into orbit. Most moderately religious Muslim women wear headscarves, but I think for most of them it's acceptable to simply cover their hair, so wearing something like a swimming cap should be acceptable.

[Zero]

In free fall, no specific way is down, right? Couldn't they just face earth when they do their lil rituals?

[Solauren]

Which was is Mecca on Earth relative to the Earth's rotation?

That's obviously Mecca in space.

[R. U. Serious]

Yeah, well, consider Ramadan: No eating between sunrise and sunset. So what happens when Ramadan is in the middle of summer and you're someplace like Lapland where the sun doesn't fucking set at all for three months [...]

If you had actually read the article, instead of just commenting on the headline, you would have gotten your answer, as the article mentions that:

Asimilar problem occurs for Muslims who live close to Earth's polar regions where there are long periods of daylight or darkness. Islamic legal scholars traditionally say that in such situations, a Muslim should pray as they would at a particular, relatively high latitude, even if they venture nearer the poles.

Because she said the teachings about it are so strict that you can't get around them by e.g. applying the sunrise/sunset times of a more southerly latitude.

This has nothing to do with the strictness of the rules, but with who gets to interpret them. It's possible that the mufti who her family asked said what she claimed, but it is a lot more likely, that they didn't ask anybody and are just ignorant and talking out if their... you get the point.

Oh for heaven's sake. Mulsims in the U.S. don't exactly get out their compass and calculate the exact direction to Mecca, do they?

Most probably don't carry a compass around, but will have checked the correct direction from their homes at least once (it's not like it changes around...). When at some place other than home, people usually ask the host (if the host is a muslim as well), or they go by where the sun rises/sets and employ their general geographic knowledge of the area.

Am I the only one who finds this thing hilarious? It makes me wonder what'll happen when we reach further to the stars. Ah, how challenging it is to have such antiquated traditions in this day and age.

Well, why should religion not have the same problems, that for example, pilosophy or law has, where concepts and traditions that were usually used to answer questions with good (enough) precision stop working, when the circumstances change. For philosophy consider the ethics of some applications of cloning, or the "rights" of (perceived) sentient AI. For law, consider what copyright or patent-laws used to do when they were enacted in their time, and what is argued about them today. Those issues are also going to be either important or hilarious depending on where you stand, and how they affect you.
The hilariousness of "in which direction to pray in space" is no more and no less hilarious than "practicing prayer 5 times a day" itself.