Today's Leap Second And Atomic Clocks

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Atomic clocks run at the same speed over millions of years, but the earth very gradually slows down spinning on its axis.  So in order to keep clocks accurate in time, every so often a second is added.  Twenty-four seconds have been added since 1972, but our days are not 24 seconds longer.  The seconds are added only to the date in which they are inserted.  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

Time Before Clocks

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

At the music convention this weekend, everyone was very much aware of the time as competitions, awards ceremonies, and other events all started strictly on time.  This made me wonder about clocks.

The first mechanical clock was erected in a tower in Italy in 1335.  Prior to this, people used water-clocks and marked candles, among other things, to keep up with the time of day.  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

What Time Is It?!

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Click here for the TimeTemperature.com website, where you can find the current time and temperature and time zone of any city in any country in the world!

What did you learn today?

Daylight Savings Time Around the World

Photo courtesy WebExhibits.org

Daylight Savings Time in the U.S.A. begins Sunday, March 11, 2012 and ends Sunday, November 4, 2012.  Click here for a map (also see above) and fascinating details about other countries around the world who currently have, previously had, and have never had DST.

What did you learn today?

Next Week: Daylight Savings Time

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

On this day next week, in the U.S. and some other countries we will be changing our clocks by one hour for Daylight Savings Time.  I remember how to make the change by saying, "Spring forward, fall backward." 

The only two states who do not use DST are Arizona and Hawaii.  In 1784 American Benjamin Franklin thought of the idea and wrote and essay about it.  In 1895 New Zealand entomologist George Vernon Hudson proposed a two-hour change.  In 1905 Englishman William Willett proposed a weekly 20-minute change over the course of four weeks each spring and fall.  For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Samoa Loses a Calendar Day

On the above map, Samoa is the red star in the center.
Photo courtesy MapQuest.com

Samoa is skipping December 30 and moving straight to December 31 in order to make a move west of the International Date Line.  This will put them in the same time zone with their other island-nation neighbors, with whom they do the bulk of their business.  Before this change, for instance, when it was Friday in Samoa it was Saturday in New Zealand, and when it was Sunday in Samoa it was Monday in New Zealand, so they lost two business days each week in which they could work together.  Samoa believes this will help their economy.  For more information click here.

Shortest Day of 2011

Photo courtesy FreeImages.co.uk

The shortest day of 2011 in the northern hemisphere will be December 22, which is the winter solstice.  The winter solstice will begin at 5:30 A.M. UTC. 

For more details go to my favorite new-to-me website, TimeandDate.com.  It's chock full of information and interactive pages.