MECCA — Saudi Arabia is building what it says will be the world’s largest umbrellas, to be installed at Masjid al-Haram next year. The umbrellas, designed to shield pilgrims from summer heat, will protect millions of Hajj travelers at the mosque. Each will measure 53 by 53 meters.
The umbrellas open and close like flowers, with their motion controlled to prevent any two from colliding. Maj. Gen. Mohammad al-Ahmadi, in charge of security at Masjid al-Haram, said the umbrellas will be installed in the mosque’s courtyard and on its roof. Because the mosque interior is air-conditioned, the area beneath the outdoor umbrellas will stay cool, he said.
The late King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud approved a project in 2014 to install 300 umbrellas in the courtyard of the Haram in Mecca, modeled on those at the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina. Expansion work at the mosque has been underway for several years.
Worshippers had been praying outside the Haram in the hot sun. The decision to install more than 300 umbrellas in the mosque’s courtyard, along with expanding the Haram area, was part of that effort. Once installed, the umbrellas will cover 275,000 square meters of open space in the mosque complex. Earlier, about 250 umbrellas were installed at the Prophet’s Mosque for the comfort of pilgrims.
The automated process of opening and closing the umbrellas changes daily temperatures. Each morning the umbrellas open to provide morning light, and at sunset they close within three minutes. In summer, the open umbrellas provide shade during the day; at night, they close to allow the pavement beneath to release accumulated heat.
The reverse process operates in winter. When temperatures fall, the umbrellas remain closed during the day to allow winter sunlight to warm the pavement. The mosque is fully air-conditioned, and the umbrellas help lower the temperature in the Haram courtyard further. The umbrellas provide additional comfort to pilgrims and worshippers in the mosque courtyard.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report