What time is it when the Indiana capital is noon?

Indiana is one of three U.S. states which do not Spring ahead from "standard" to "daylight saving" time or Fall back from daylight to standard six months later. Arizona and Hawaii are the others. By State Law, most of Indiana is on Eastern Standard Time (EST) all year long.

The statute creates three different time arrangements in the Hoosier State:

77 counties (including state capital Indianapolis) are in the Eastern Time Zone but do not change to Daylight time in April; instead they remain on Standard Time all year long; [yellow on map and chart]
10 counties -- five near Chicago, IL, and five near Evansville, IN, are in the Central Time Zone and use both Central Standard and Central Daylight; [green on map and chart] and
five other counties -- two near Cincinnati, OH, and three near Louisville, KY -- are in the Eastern Time Zone but use both Eastern Standard and Eastern Daylight. [pink on map and chart]


	Locations	During U.S. standard time	During U.S. daylight saving time
Central Indiana (1)	Indianapolis, and most of Indiana, including Bloomington	Noon Eastern Standard EST	Noon Eastern Standard EST
Western portions of Indiana (2)	Chicago, IL and Jasper, Lake, LaPorte, Newton, and Porter counties	11:00 AM Central Standard CST	Noon Central Daylight CDT
	Evansville, IN and Gibson, Posey, Spencer, Vanderburgh, and Warrick counties
Eastern portions of Indiana (3)	Cincinnati, OH and Dearborn and Ohio counties	Noon Eastern Standard EST	1:00 PM Eastern Daylight EDT
	Louisville, KY and Clark, Floyd and Harrison counties

Many believe that Indiana changes time zones in the Summer. Part of the confusion stems from the fact that in the Winter, most of Indiana is the same time as New York (which is also Eastern), and in the Summer, Indiana is the same time as Chicago (which is Central).

Actually, by going to Daylight time in April, the Central Zone Springs ahead from Standard to CDT, which is the same as Eastern Standard (Indiana time). By switching from Eastern Daylight (EDT) to Standard in October, the rest of the Eastern Zone Falls back to EST (Indiana time). Indiana, Arizona, and Hawaii are constants -- always Standard time.

Worldwide daylight saving

Today approximately 70 countries utilize Daylight Saving Time in at least a portion of the country. The only major industrialized country not to have introduced daylight saving is Japan.

While European nations have been taking advantage of the time change for decades, in 1996 the European Union (EU) standardized an EU-wide "summertime period." The EU version of Daylight Saving Time runs from the last Sunday in March through the last Sunday in October. During the summer, Russia's clocks are two hours ahead of standard time. For example, Moscow standard time (UTC+3) is about a half-hour ahead of local mean time (UTC+2:30); this is about the same situation as Detroit, whose standard time (UTC-5) is also about a half-hour ahead of local mean time (UTC-5:32). During the winter, all 11 of the Russian time zones remain an hour ahead of standard time. With their high latitude, the two hours of Daylight Saving Time really helps to save daylight. In the Southern Hemisphere where summer comes in December, Daylight Saving Time is observed from October to March. (The clock at above right is viewed from within the Musée d'Orsay in Paris.)

Not the tropics

Equatorial and tropical countries (lower latitudes) do not observe Daylight Saving Time since the daylight hours are similar during every season, so there is no advantage to moving clocks forward during the summer. China has had a single time zone since May 1, 1980 observing summer DST from 1986 through 1991; they do not now.

List of countries

Most countries that observe daylight saving time are listed in the table below. They all save one hour in the summer and change their clocks some time between midnight and 3 am.


Continent	Country	Beginning and ending days
Africa	Egypt	Start: Last Friday in April End: Last Thursday in September
	Namibia	Start: First Sunday in September End: First Sunday in April
Asia	Most states of the former USSR.	Start: Last Sunday in March End: Last Sunday in October
	Iraq	Start: April 1 End: October 1
	Israel	(Estimate, Israel decides the dates every year) Start: First Friday in April End: First Friday in September
	Lebanon, Kirgizstan	Start: Last Sunday in March End: Last Sunday in October
	Mongolia	Stopped in 2002
	Palestine	(Estimate) Start: First Friday on or after 15 April End: First Friday on or after 15 October
	Syria	Start: April 1 End: October 1
	Iran	Start: the first day of Farvardin End: the first day of Mehr
Australasia	Australia - South Australia, Victoria, Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Lord Howe Island	Start: Last Sunday in October End: Last Sunday in March
	Australia - Tasmania	Start: First Sunday in October End: Last Sunday in March
	Fiji	Stopped in 2000
	New Zealand, Chatham - (read law)	Start: First Sunday in October End: Third Sunday in March
	Tonga	Start: First Sunday in November End: Last Sunday in January
Europe	European Union - (read law) UK - (read law)	Start: Last Sunday in March at 1 am UTC End: Last Sunday in October at 1 am UTC
	Russia	Start: Last Sunday in March at 2 am local time End: Last Sunday in October at 2 am local time
North America	United States, Canada, Mexico St. Johns, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos	Start: First Sunday in April End: Last Sunday in October
	Cuba	Start: April 1 End: Last Sunday in October
	Greenland	Same as EU
South America	Brazil (rules vary quite a bit from year to year). Also, equatorial Brazil does not observe DST.	Start: First Sunday in November End: Third Sunday in February
	Chile - (read law)	Start: Second Saturday of October - at midnight End: Second Saturday of March - at midnight
	Falklands	Start: First Sunday on or after 8 September End: First Sunday on or after 6 April
	Paraguay	Start: First Sunday in September End: First Sunday in April
Antarctica	Antarctica	(varies, see below)

Note that there are many oddities. For example, some parts of the US and Canada do not observe Daylight Saving Time, such as the state of Arizona (US) and the province Saskatchewan (Canada).

Observance can also be erratic. For example, Chile delayed its changeover date for the Pope's visit in 1987, and a presidential inauguration in 1990.

In Japan, Daylight saving was introduced after World War II by the US occupation but was dispensed with in 1952, following opposition from farmers. Despite efforts by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry to have daylight saving introduced to cut Japan's energy consumption, opposition from farmers and the Ministry of Education (who were concerned that lighter evenings would entice school children from their homework) has continued to win the day.


	Clark Dam at Butlers Gorge in Tasmania. The bulk of the electricity in Tasmania is generated by hydroelectric stations, causing an energy shortage in the drought of 1967.

Australia

In Australia, Daylight Saving was first introduced during World War I under Commonwealth legislation which, due to wartime emergency, was binding on all the States. During the world wars, DST was implemented for the late summers beginning January 1917 and 1942, and the full summers beginning September 1942 and 1943. (Western Australia did not use DST summer 1943).In 1967, Tasmania experienced a drought, which depleted their reserves of water. The State Government introduced one hour of daylight saving that summer as a means of saving power and hence water. Tasmanians reacted favorably to daylight saving and the Tasmanian Government has declared daylight saving each summer since 1968. After persuasion by the Tasmanian Government, all States (except Western Australia and the Northern Territory) passed legislation in 1971, for a trial season of daylight saving. The following year, New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria joined Tasmania for regular daylight saving, but Queensland did not until 1989.

Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia have had erratic schedules, often changing their dates due to politics, and to accommodate festivals. For example, in 1992, Tasmania extended daylight saving by an additional month while South Australia began extending daylight saving by two weeks to encompass the Adelaide Festival. In some years Victoria extended daylight saving to the end of March for the Moomba Festival and South Australia and New South Wales followed suit for consistency. Special daylight saving arrangements were observed during the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

In response to the problems caused by nonuniformity, a Private Members Bill, the National Measurement (Standard Time) Amendment Bill 1991, was introduced into Federal Parliament in May 1991 by Ron Edwards, Member for Stirling in WA to define a national system of time zones and DST for Australia and its external territories. But in March 1992 the Federal Government decided not proceed with the Bill, and the setting of time zones and daylight saving will remain the responsibility of the State and Territory governments. The lack of uniformity of daylight saving in Australia continues to cause significant problems for transport and communication organizations. It also reduces the number of hours in the working day that are common to all centers in the country. In particular, time differences along the east coast causes major difficulties, especially for the broadcasters of national radio and television that can only be partly overcome by substantial capital investments.

Middle East

Israel

Israel always has Daylight Saving time, but it is decided every year. According to the Office of the Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, there is NO set rule for Daylight-Saving/Standard time changes. One thing is entrenched in law, however: that there must be at least 150 days of daylight saving time annually. From 1993-1998, the change to daylight saving time was on a Friday morning from midnight IST to 1 a.m IDT; up until 1998, the change back to standard time was on a Saturday night from midnight daylight saving time to 11 p.m. standard time. 1996 is an exception to this rule where the change back to standard time took place on Sunday night instead of Saturday night to avoid conflicts with the Jewish New Year. Starting in 1999, the change to daylight saving time will still be on a Friday morning but from 2 a.m. IST to 3 a.m. IDT; furthermore, the change back to standard time will now also be on a Friday morning from 2 a.m. IDT to 1 a.m. IST.

Palestine

The area of Palestine has had varying Daylight Saving Time rules as the dramatic politics of the region have swayed the occupying power. Being closer to the equator than Europe, there is less need for DST, but it has generally been observed anyway. At present, as a sign of independence from Israeli rule, the Palestinian Authority uses a different schedule than Israel.

Early in the twentieth century, the British were quick to standardize time, and from 1917 until 15 May 1948, all of Palestine, including the parts now known as the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, was under British rule, and followed British time changes.

Later, the Gaza Strip was mostly under Egyptian rule from 15 May 1948 until 5 June 1967, and followed Egyptian policy. The rest of Palestine was under Jordanian rule at that time, formally annexed in 1950 as the West Bank (and the word "Trans" was dropped from the country's previous name of "the Hashemite Kingdom of the Trans-Jordan"). So the rules for Jordan for that time apply. Major towns in that area are Nablus (Shchem), El-Halil (Hebron), Ramallah, and East Jerusalem. Both areas followed Israeli time when they were occupied by Israel in June 1967, but not annexed (except for East Jerusalem). The Palestinian Authority was established in 1993, and controlled most towns in the West Bank and Gaza by 1995. The Palestinians began using their own time change dates, separate from Israel's.

Jordan

In 1999, Jordan decided to implement summer time all year round.

Antarctica

The Antarctic Peninsula (Palmer Station) uses Chile's time zone, the rest of the continent does not. Rothera, a British base, does not implement daylight savings, but instead remains GMT -3. U.S. bases, including both McMurdo and Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station use New Zealand's time zone and daylight saving dates.

More information

> For information about world calendars, see our Calendars through the Ages,

> For more changeover dates, map, and time zones, see WorldTimeZone (external site).

Build more power plants, and leave the cottonpickin' clocks alone.

Basically, what I'm saying is, time to change your clocks tonight.

Many see this time of year for an extra hour of sleep but I see it as an extra hour of Freeping.

If DST was so good during the Energy Crisis Mark I, why not keep it all year round now?

Actually, in my opionion, DST was a political victory of the Golf Course Cartel over the Movie Industry Moguls.

In computing the advantages of DST, one might also compute the time lost due to missed appointments, especially those with trains, planes, and boats.

There is no need to change the clocks.

It is a raw exercise of arbitrary power to remind us who is boss (and it isn't the people.)

OK :-) so di I move my clock forward or backwards one hour?

SPRING FORWARD FALL BEHIND

So..... whats gonna fall on my behind? :-)

I still look forward to seeing Microsoft change my computer clock automatically and it's polite enough to ask me if I want the change first. Tomorrow I may say no and see what happenes.

As the late Robert W. Morgan would say:

Spring Back or Fall Forward!

Hey! This is great. Starting tomorrow, the clock in my car will be correct. (for the next 6 months at least)

Nam Vet

I still look forward to seeing Microsoft change my computer clock automatically and it's polite enough to ask me if I want the change first. Tomorrow I may say no and see what happenes.

Microsoft doesn't do that any more. They hired me to contact everyone and ask them...so don't be a pain in the butt...it'll cut into my scotch rocks time.

As the late Robert W. Morgan would say: Spring Back or Fall Forward!

Good old "W.D.", as Coach Malavasi used to garble his name.....he never, ever could get that one right.....I miss him as well as Jim Healy.

I spent a few weeks (in the Fall) on the Navajo reservation in AZ. It was confusing since AZ does not change for daylight savings (at least back in 1988). The Navajo reservation was EXTREMELY confusing as there was no uniform date at which the change occurred. Thus, the school could have switched back to standard time but the gas station would not have switched for another week and the grocery store switched whenever they get around to it.

....we use less electricity for lighting and appliances.

Although it hasn't been proven by science, flourescent lighting is bad for the soul.

Ah! Jim Healy:
>"The flag is up!"
>"Say what?"
>"Goldberg would love to do it."

Good work.

My biological clock doesn't change no matter what the time piece says.

5.56mm

I don't understand how the TV/TV guide work. I try to stay up every year but never make it. What happens when the clocks move back? Do they show the same thing again? Do they show something else? If they show something else, why is it never reflected in the TV guide? Also, a movie that normally would start at say 12:30 and run till 3:30 will still say that it runs from 12:30 till 3:30, although that can't possibly be the case.

WTF?

In my home we still use notched candles for telling the time. This time of the year it is easy to change the time, we simply extinguish the flame for an hour. It is six months from now when we have to jump forward that all the problems start.
The Chicago fire is a good example of what can happen at that time.