Time for Geography

Copyright 2008 by Paul Blankenship

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Grade-Level Expectation
Geography
The World in Spatial Terms
Benchmark G-1A-M2 interpreting and developing maps, globes, graphs, charts, models,
and databases to analyze spatial distributions and patterns; (1, 2, 3, 4)
GLE #1. Use time zones in the United States or the International Date Line to interpret a
map or representation of a globe and calculate current times in different places (G-1A-M2)

Objective
We will use time zones in the United States and the International Date Line to interpret a
map or representation of a globe and calculate current times in different places.

Introduction
The measurement of time in the past was a local matter. Each town had its own time set by
observation of the sun.
The invention and construction of the railroads required a new precision in the
measurement of time.
Time zones were invented to standardize time across large areas of the Earth.

Standard Time
Long distance rail travel in the nineteenth century (the 1800s) required that time-keeping be
coordinated over long distances, especially in North America.
Sir Sandford Fleming, a Canadian railway planner, developed a plan for a worldwide
system of standard time during the 1870s that was adopted by many nations, including the
United States, in 1884.

UTC
Coordinated Universal Time (abbreviated UTC) was established in 1963 to resolve the
differences between time measured by atomic clocks (atomic time) and astronomical time
(known as Universal Time 1).
UTC is the basis for civil (legal) and scientific timekeeping around the world.

Time Zones
Time zones are large areas of the Earth that share the same clock time.
The time zones run from the North Pole to the South Pole and are about 15 degrees
longitude wide.
The Earth has 24 time zones. Within these areas some governments, such as Afghanistan,
may operate on their own local time.
Time Zones and the United States
The United States, including its territories, spans nine official standard time zones. Some
islands (such as Wake Island) fall outside these legally recognized time zones.
Four standard time zones cover the continental United States.
Five others cover Alaska, Hawaii, and islands possessed by the United States.

The Continental United States

The Continental United States includes four standard time zones. From East to West these
are:
Eastern Time
Central Time
Mountain Time
Pacific Time

Eastern Standard Time

Eastern Time covers the Atlantic coast states and part of the Ohio Valley.
EST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 5
Daylight Savings Time = UTC - 4

Central Standard Time

Central Time covers the central United States from Alabama to Texas. Louisiana is in the
Central Time Zone.
CST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 6
Daylight Savings Time = UTC - 5

Mountain Standard Time

Mountain Time covers the Rocky Mountain area of the United States.
MST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 7
Daylight Savings Time = UTC - 6

Pacific Standard Time

Pacific Time covers the Pacific coast of the United States.
PST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 8
Daylight Savings Time = UTC - 7

Time Zones of Alaska and Hawaii

Alaska and Hawaii cover two time zones:
Alaskan Time
Hawaii-Aleutian Time

Alaskan Standard Time

Alaskan Time covers the mainland of Alaska, but not the Aleutian Islands.
AST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 9
Daylight Savings Time = UTC - 8
Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time
Hawaii-Aleutian Time the Aleutian and Hawaiian Islands.
HAST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 10
Daylight Savings Time = UTC - 9

Other U. S. Time Zones

The other time zones of the United States beyond the 50 states are:
Atlantic Standard Time
Samoa Standard Time
Chamorro Standard Time

Atlantic Standard Time

Atlantic Time is used in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Atlantic Standard Time v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 4
Daylight Savings = UTC - 3 (Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands do not observe
DST)

Samoa Standard Time

Samoa Time covers the island of Samoa.
SST v. UTC
Standard = UTC - 11
Daylight Savings Time is not used in Samoa.

Chamorro Standard Time

Chamorro Time covers the islands of Guam and the Northern Marianas.
ChST v. UTC
Standard = UTC + 10
Daylight Savings Time is not used in this time zone.

The International Date Line

Mnemonic: Don’t call 180-LINE if you are lonely, it’s not that kind of date line.
The International Date Line is an imaginary line running from pole to pole at about 180
degrees longitude.
The line shifts to keep the Aleutian Islands in the same day as Alaska and some South
Pacific Islands in the same day as New Zealand.

The International Date Line

Just as a traveller crossing into another time zone sets his or her watch to a new hour, a
traveller crossing the International Date Line would set his calendar.
Going east across the International Date Line requires the traveller to set the calendar back
one day.
Going west across the International Date Line requires the traveller to set the calendar
ahead one day.

Resources
For helpful links see http://del.icio.us/louisianastudies/gle01
For more links, videos, and information about how Mr. Blankenship teaches this GLE see
http://lastudies.blogspot.com/search/label/gle01
For other presentations see http://www.paulblankenship.com and http://idisk.mac.com/
kd5rui-Public?view=web