I can't figure out the International Date Line to save my life.

[edprush]

Let's say I'm in Chicago right now. The time would be MONDAY @ 9:21pm CST (in daylight savings time) which is GMT-6.

Tokyo, according to http://www.worldtimezone.com/time/wtzresult.php?CiID=4364&forma=Find%20Time
it is MONDAY @ 11:21pm (they are not in DST) which is GMT+9.

I don't fricken' understand the International Date Line. Since you have to cross the International Date Line to get to Tokyo from Chicago, shouldn't it be Tuesday in Tokyo if it is MONDAY in Chicago?

 

[LS20]

if you fly in the opposite direction, would you need to cross the date line then to get to chicago?

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: LS20
if you fly in the opposite direction, would you need to cross the date line then to get to chicago?

It depends if the plane took off from a conveyor belt.

 

[SKORPI0]

Wrong....

Chicago - 9:35 am Monday-
Tokyo - 11:35 PM Monday

 

[Quasmo]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: LS20
if you fly in the opposite direction, would you need to cross the date line then to get to chicago?

It depends if the plane took off from a conveyor belt.

But then you would never get there.

 

[rivan]

Originally posted by: edprush
Let's say I'm in Chicago right now. The time would be MONDAY @ 9:21pm CST (in daylight savings time) which is GMT-6.

Tokyo, according to http://www.worldtimezone.com/time/wtzresult.php?CiID=4364&forma=Find%20Time
it is MONDAY @ 11:21pm (they are not in DST) which is GMT+9.

I don't fricken' understand the International Date Line. Since you have to cross the International Date Line to get to Tokyo from Chicago, shouldn't it be Tuesday in Tokyo if it is MONDAY in Chicago?

The date actually changes 180 degrees from the GMT time zone - that's why the US is GMT -x hours and the other side of the planet - Europe, Asia, etc is GMT + hours.

GMT-6 means when it's noon in Greenwich, it's 6 AM. At the exact same time, the same day, Tokyo is GMT+9, which is 9 PM.

You only get a date change when those offsets produce times that fall over a day, like if it's 6 PM Monday in Greenwich. It'd be noon Monday in Chicago and 3 AM Tuesday in Tokyo.

It's an expanded version of the east coast getting to Tuesday before the west coast - 4 hours earlier since the time offset bewteen the two is 4 hours (GMT -5 and GMT -8 recpectively).

 

[allisolm]

Originally posted by: edprush
Let's say I'm in Chicago right now. The time would be MONDAY @ 9:21pm CST (in daylight savings time) which is GMT-6.

Tokyo, according to http://www.worldtimezone.com/time/wtzresult.php?CiID=4364&forma=Find%20Time
it is MONDAY @ 11:21pm (they are not in DST) which is GMT+9.

I don't fricken' understand the International Date Line. Since you have to cross the International Date Line to get to Tokyo from Chicago, shouldn't it be Tuesday in Tokyo if it is MONDAY in Chicago?

Now it's Tuesday in Tokyo. Problem solved.

 

[edprush]

Originally posted by: rivan
The date actually changes 180 degrees from the GMT time zone - that's why the US is GMT -x hours and the other side of the planet - Europe, Asia, etc is GMT + hours.

GMT-6 means when it's noon in Greenwich, it's 6 AM. At the exact same time, the same day, Tokyo is GMT+9, which is 9 PM.

You only get a date change when those offsets produce times that fall over a day, like if it's 6 PM Monday in Greenwich. It'd be noon Monday in Chicago and 3 AM Tuesday in Tokyo.

It's an expanded version of the east coast getting to Tuesday before the west coast - 4 hours earlier since the time offset bewteen the two is 4 hours (GMT -5 and GMT -8 recpectively).

But according to sites like this:
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/international_date.html

That is the date in the Eastern hemisphere, to the left of the line, is always one day ahead of the date in the Western hemisphere.

I am in the Western Hemisphere but Tokyo is in the Eastern Hemisphere.

 

[dullard]

You are confusing (1) the fixed International Date Line with (2) the moving line where there is a different day on either side (that latter line moves every hour and it moves all around the world).

For example, if it is 11:50 pm in Chicago on Friday, then it is 12:50 am in NCY on Saturday. The line where the date changed was the border between the Central and Easter time zones. An hour later, it'll be 11:50 pm in Denver on Friday and 12:50 am in Chicago on Saturday. At that time, the line where the date changed was the border between the Mountain and Central time zones.

Each hour the line where the date changes moves one time zone.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: edprush
Let's say I'm in Chicago right now. The time would be MONDAY @ 9:21pm CST (in daylight savings time) which is GMT-6.

Tokyo, according to http://www.worldtimezone.com/time/wtzresult.php?CiID=4364&forma=Find%20Time
it is MONDAY @ 11:21pm (they are not in DST) which is GMT+9.

I don't fricken' understand the International Date Line. Since you have to cross the International Date Line to get to Tokyo from Chicago, shouldn't it be Tuesday in Tokyo if it is MONDAY in Chicago?

No. If you were flying west to Tokyo from Chicago at that time, you'd cross over the International Date Line (at which point you'd be in Tuesday - but very early Tuesday), then you'd cross through a few more time zones and it'd be back to Monday. That is, if you could fly really, really fast.

Edit: then it would pretty quickly become Tuesday again.

 

[Ipno]

That is, if you could fly really, really fast.

Yeah, thats how Superman saved Lois lane in Superman 1.

 

[edprush]

According to:

http://geography.about.com/od/physicalgeography/a/idl.htm

Let's say you fly from the United States to Japan. Let's suppose you leave the United States on Tuesday morning. Since you're traveling west the time advances slowly thanks to time zones and the speed at which your airplane flies, but once you cross the International Date Line, it's suddenly Wednesday.

 

[alkemyst]

the International 'Date' Line is simply 'my place?'...all non-native speakers understand that.