Makkah’s Holy Mosque to Install Sunshades

Aiming to protect worshippers form the scorching sun, hundreds of sunshades will be installed in the courtyards of Al-Masjid al-Haram in the holy city of Makkah, as part of the new extensions provided at Islam’s holiest shrine.

“We have decided to install more than 300 umbrellas in the courtyards around the Grand Mosque including the newly expanded areas,” Sheikh Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais, head of the Presidency for the Two Holy Mosques, told Arab News on Monday, December 15.
Some 300 sunshades, which would cover nearly 275,000 square meters of open space surrounding the Grand Mosque, were recently approved by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
The new umbrellas are similar to the ones at the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah that contains 250 sunshades.
Opened every morning, the sunshades are unfolded at night within three minutes through a minutely delayed sequence to avoid friction of its parts.
Working to reflect away the sun harmful radiation during summer, the sunshades will be closed at the morning in winter to allow sun rays, while opened at night to retain heat.
Al-Masjid al-Haram is Islam’s holiest shrine and home to the Ka`bah, the direction Muslims take during prayers.
Muslims from around the world pour into Makkah every year to perform hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam.
Hajj consists of several ceremonies, which are meant to symbolize the essential concepts of the Islamic faith, and to commemorate the trials of Prophet Abraham and his family.
Every able-bodied adult Muslim who can financially afford the trip must perform hajj at least once in a lifetime.
Over the past few years, the Saudi government has championed several projects to develop and expand Makkah to help
In November 2009, Riyadh declared it has completed a five-storey hi-tech Jamarat Bridge to ensure a smooth flow of millions of pilgrims during the pelting ritual of the annual hajj.
The bridge has 10 entrances and 12 exits over its four levels to allow the flow of 300,000 pilgrims per hour.
It is also equipped with technology to help authorities intervene in case of any deadly stampedes during the stoning ritual.
Other projects were also performed to expand the area on top of the holy Mount `Arafat, develop the sewage and fire-fighting systems and upgrade health and transportation service.