Hello Harriet, The reference meridian is 75W for EST, and here in Cincinnati (approx 84W30) we are about 38 minutes behind the clock for local noon. At certain times of the year the difference between unadjusted dial time and watch time can be almost an hour! The official time zone lines weave about to try to miss towns, so check a map to be sure about a specific location.
So, your estimate for Pittsburgh is about right. Indiana does not do Daylight Savings Time at all, and I don't think Arizona does either (John Carmichael can help you with that). We live right beside Indiana and there is a school nearby (in a place called College Corner) that actually has two time zones - the line runs right through the middle of the basketball court in the gymnasium - and on one wall the clock reads Indiana time and the other opposite wall has a clock displaying EST! That town lies right on the border and people have got quite a predicament on their hands getting somewhere on time...you have to know which side of the line the place you are going to is...quite interesting for business meetings and job interviews... Right now we are the same time as Indiana, in a few weeks we will be one hour off from them until the Fall. Do let me know when you have your dial done, I would love to see a picture of it! Jim Tallman Sr. Designer FX Studios ----- Original Message ----- From: "harriet" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "sundial mailing list" <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, March 27, 2001 4:35 AM Subject: Time Zones > Dear All, > > Can anyone clarify American and European time zones for me? I am trying > to write instructions for setting up a dial which can be used in any > location. > > The NASS dialist's companion gives the meridians for US time zones > as: Atlantic 60° W > Eastern 75° W > Central 90°W > Mountain 105° W > Pacific 120°W > > Do all Americans adhere to these time zones, or are some like the French > who > like to be one hour ahead of GMT even though France lies within 7.5° of the > Greenwich > Meridian? > > If I set up a dial in say Pittsburg, Pennsylvania (longitude 80° W) which > tells local solar time, > ignoring corrections for the Equation of Time, am I correct in saying that > it will run 20 minutes slow to Eastern Standard Time as it is 5° west of > the Eastern time meridian? > > Do countries in Europe apart from France adhere to the 'correct' zone? > What about daylight saving in the US and Europe? > > Any help gratefully received. > > Harriet James > >
