Do NOT Turn Your Clocks Back!
You’ve heard – Daylight savings time 2009: fall back! Please don’t turn your grandfather and cuckoo clocks back. The time change happened in October last year, but the time change this year will happen in November in the United States, specifically the first Sunday (November 1). Those in the European Union have completed the Daylight Savings Time 2009 fall back on October 25. They still remained with the old standard fall back period on the last Sunday in October. In the United States, the time change occurs at 2 am local time, so the time change happens at a different time for each time zone.
What is the purpose of Daylight Savings Time? The 2009 fall back will make the sun rise one hour later in the morning, and then set one hour later in the evening. This makes the day feel longer, and gives everyone what seems to be an extra hour of daylight. The standard timekeeping system related to the arrangement of time zones was made official in the United States by an Act of Congress in March 1918, some 34 years following the agreement reached at an international conference. Given a 24 hour day and 360 degrees of longitude around the earth, the world’s 24 time zones have to be 15 degrees wide, on average. The individual zone boundaries are not straight, however, because they have been adjusted for the convenience and desires of local populations.
As I am about to cross many time zones, again please remember, you should not turn your grandfather and cuckoo clocks back one hour, instead either stop your timepiece for one hour and then restart, or carefully advance forward the minute hand of your clock until you reach the correct new time. Make sure you allow your clock to properly strike the correct number of times for each hour you advance. I prefer spring ahead, it’s a whole lot easier.