3/10/23, 9:09 AM Daylight saving time, facts and information

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SCIENCE EXPLAINER

Why daylight saving

time exists—at least for
now
In the U.S., the Sunshine Protection Act made it feel
like both sides of the aisle could agree on one thing:
changing the clocks is outdated. So why are we still
doing it?

A clockmaker sets the time on a cuckoo clock made by Rombach and Haas. Germany was the
first country to implement daylight saving time, a gambit to maximize resources during sunlit
hours during World War I.
PHOTOGRAPH BY PHILIPP VON DITFURTH, PICTURE ALLIANCE/GETTY
IMAGES

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PUBLISHED MARCH 10, 2023 • 8 MIN READ

Spring marks many changes: warmer weather, longer days, blooming

flowers—and, for many people around the world, the beginning of daylight
saving time.

In the United States, however, there’s a growing push to do away with this
particular rite of spring. A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the U.S.
Congress has once again introduced a bill to make daylight saving time

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permanent. Known as the Sunshine Protection Act, the bill shocked the
country when it passed in the Senate in 2022. Though it eventually died a
slow death in the House of Representatives, the bill will now wend its way
through the legislative process yet again.

The idea behind the clock shift, often incorrectly called daylight savings
time, is to maximize sunlight in the Northern Hemisphere. But people
have long argued over the benefits of the time shift. Some point to studies
showing that it can harm your health, while others argue that the extra
hours of daylight allow people to get outdoors in the evening.

But what exactly is daylight saving time, and when does it begin this year?
Here’s a look at the history of the time shift and why it’s so controversial
today. (Learn about daylight saving time with your kids.)

When is daylight saving time this year?

In 2023, daylight saving time begins on March 12 and ends on November
5.

Clocks change at 2:00 a.m. local time on the second Sunday in March,
when clocks spring forward an hour—typically causing observers to lose an
hour of sleep. Daylight saving time ends at 2:00 a.m. local time on the first
Sunday in November, when clocks fall back by an hour and observers gain
an hour of sleep.

3:03

D AY L I G H T S AV I N G T I M E 1 0 1
About 70 countries around the world practice Daylight Saving Time. Find out who came up with
the concept of Daylight Saving Time, where the time change was first enacted nationwide, and
how some countries are attempting to eliminate it.

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What's behind the changes in sunlight?

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Seasonal shifts in the length of a day come from Earth's off-kilter rotation.
Our planet turns on its axis at a relatively constant 23.4-degree angle
relative to its path around the sun. This means that while the Equator
usually enjoys roughly 12 hours of both day and night year round, the same
isn't true the further north or south you go.

Summertime marks the Northern Hemisphere's time to shine. It leans

toward the sun, causing longer and warmer days. Meanwhile, the Southern
Hemisphere is plunged into the short days of winter as it tilts away from
the sun. Six months later, the situation reverses, and winter grips the
North while light bathes the South.

When coal powered lights, daylight saving time was implemented as a way
to add an hour of sunlight to the end of the workday by springing forward
and falling back—adding or removing an hour to align with daylight.
Because of this, a given region's participation depends, in part, on how far
the location is from the Equator. Countries that are farther away have a
more pronounced difference in day length between summer and winter
and are more likely to participate in the time shift.

Why was daylight saving time created?

Many credit Benjamin Franklin for daylight saving time thanks to a
possibly satirical letter he penned for the Journal de Paris in 1784. In the
letter, he expressed astonishment to see the sun rise at the early hour of six
in the morning, long before most Parisians ever saw the light of day.

If they were to rise with the sun, Franklin wrote, the city could save an
“immense sum” from the candles burned in the dark evening hours. He
never suggested a shift in clocks, however, instead offering other amusing
solutions to the problem that included cannons firing in the street to rouse
people from sleep, taxes for shuttered windows, and candle sales
restrictions.

Others credit the idea to George Hudson, an entomologist from New

Zealand, who in 1895 suggested a two-hour shift to allow for more post-
work bug hunting. Soon after, a British activist named William Willett
proposed a similar idea to prevent wasting daylight, bringing the concept
to England's Parliament in the early 1900s.

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It wasn't until resources became scarce during World War I that Germany
decided to go ahead with just such a plan, implementing the first daylight
saving time in 1916 to maximize resource use during sunlit hours. The

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United States soon followed suit, with the country's first seasonal time
shift taking place in 1918.

Who observes daylight saving time?

Not everyone is in on the clock-changing frenzy. In the U.S., 19 states have
passed legislation or resolutions to adopt permanent daylight saving time
—but these laws would only go into effect if the U.S. Congress passes its
Sunshine Protection Act.

Meanwhile, a handful of states and territories already opt out of daylight

saving time entirely: Hawaii, most of Arizona (excluding the Navajo
Nation), and the territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the
U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Globally, the popularity of changing clocks varies as well. Most of North

America, Europe, New Zealand, and a few regions of the Middle East are in
on the annual shift, though each have different start and stop dates. But
the majority of Africa and Asia do not change their clocks. South America
and Australia are split on the matter.

Europe's participation, however, soon may change. In 2019, the European

Union voted to end the mandatory time shift, which previously spanned
March and October. But that plan seems to be on hold for now:
Negotiations have stalled as the bloc deals with fallout from both Brexit
and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Are there benefits to daylight saving time?

For many, the change seems meddlesome, resulting in missed meetings
and sleepy citizens. There may be even more severe effects. Some studies
identified an increase in heart attacks that coincides with springing
forward and a slight decrease when falling back. Other studies suggest the
time change could be linked to an increase of fatal car accidents, though
the effect is small relative to the total number of crashes each year. Still
other concerns include impacts to the immune system due to the inevitable
sleep loss.

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What's more, many studies have questioned whether there have ever been
energy savings at all. A 2008 study from the U.S. Department of Energy
suggested that in the United States, an extra four weeks of daylight saving
time saved about 0.5 percent in total electricity a day. But others conclude
the situation is largely a wash: The later sunlight hours do often reduce
electricity use during this time, but they also spur more intense use of air

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conditioning in the evening or greater energy demands to light up the dark

mornings.

Even so, those impacts may be location specific. One study found that
daylight saving time caused an increase in energy demand and pollution
emissions in Indiana, while another found it led to slight reductions in
energy use in Norway and Sweden.

These days, arguments in favor of daylight saving time generally center on

the boost the time shift gives to evening activities. People tend to go
outside when it's light after work—playing sports, going for walks, taking
kids to the playground—rather than sitting on the couch. Many outdoor
industries, including golf and barbecue, have even promoted daylight
saving time, which they say boosts profits. The petroleum industry is also a
fan, as people drive more if it is still light after work or school.

But in many places, the time shift is very unpopular. Europe's pending
move away from the annual change stemmed from a survey that revealed
roughly 80 percent of some 4.6 million respondents were against daylight
saving time.

For now, however, if you live in a region that shifts the clocks twice a year,
be wary of its effects.

Editor's note: This story was originally published in February 2019. It has been
updated.

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