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Ephemeris: 03/08/2024 – We’re one month away from the last Great American Eclipse for the next 21 years
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for International Women’s Day, Friday, March 8th. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 6:40, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:05. The Moon, 2 days before new, will rise at 7:01 tomorrow morning.
We are exactly one month from our total solar eclipse this year, so I hope you’ve gotten your eclipse glasses or whatever else you need to safely view the Sun, or make plans to drive to the path of totality. This weekend we have a time change, spring forward to daylight savings time. It’s something I don’t look forward to, because it pushes the darkness in the evening out one more hour later. Not only does the sunset later each night, but we mess with the clocks to make it even later. By the end of June and early July twilight doesn’t officially end until after midnight. Then we only get 4 1/2 hours of darkness anyway if the Moon wasn’t out.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
03/12/2021 – Ephemeris – It’s about time
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Friday, March 12th. Today the Sun will be up for 11 hours and 45 minutes, setting at 6:45, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:58. The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 7:31 tomorrow morning.
Sunday morning at the instant the clock strikes 2 am, it will magically become 3 am. March 14th will become the shortest day of the year at 23 hours. The hour will be returned, without interest I might add, on the first Sunday in November. And we can’t even say “Spring forward.” It’s not even spring yet. “Late winter forward” just doesn’t have the same ring to it. Actually noon is not midday for those who work days. It’s more like two in the afternoon, maybe later. We have more leisure time after work than before, which kind of makes sense. But in summer the Sun’s out a long time anyway. In late June the Sun doesn’t set until 9:30 at night around here. It doesn’t get really dark until after 11 pm. It may be great for golfers, but not for those who enjoy the night sky.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dalí.
Growing up in the 1950s I wasn’t aware that we in Michigan didn’t set our clocks forward or back with the seasons until we got a television. All of a sudden in April all the evening shows came on an hour earlier. Around Halloween, they went back to their former times. In the 60s the politicians started to mess around with our clocks, first on the Federal level, then the state level. Long story short, we’re doing the spring forward, fall back thing like almost everyone else. The problem I see is that we are far west of our Eastern Standard Time meridian of 75 degrees west longitude, which runs through Philadelphia, PA. I live 43 Earth rotational minutes west of there. Standard time for us is almost like Daylight Saving Time for New York City. So come Sunday we will experience double daylight time. Kinda like “Double Secret Probation.” /rant
03/10/2017 – Ephemeris – Daylight Saving Time starts Sunday
Ephemeris for Friday, March 10th. The Sun will rise at 7:03. It’ll be up for 11 hours and 39 minutes, setting at 6:42. The Moon, 2 days before full, will set at 6:38 tomorrow morning.
Daylight saving time will begin this Sunday at 2 a.m. That means “spring forward”, setting our clocks ahead an hour. Did you know that we spend more time under daylight time than standard time. Standard time only lasts about 4 months and one week. The rest of the time, nearly 8 months is spent under daylight time. According to theory, anyway, one’s time meridian should run in the middle of its time zone. Right now our standard time meridian of 75 degrees west longitude runs through Philadelphia, 5 hours west of the prime meridian of Greenwich. Come Sunday our time meridian will be 60 degrees west longitude, in the Atlantic at our latitude, and further to the north just touches the eastern tip of Nova Scotia. In relation to the actual Sun we will be an hour and 43 minutes behind it, which is why sundials don’t tell the correct time around here.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Time zones with their meridians for North America.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 