Alaska Time Zone

History

Main article: Time in Alaska

Two time zones have been referred to as the "Alaska Time Zone": a zone based on UTC−10:00 that covered much of Central Alaska in the early 20th century, and a zone based on UTC−09:00 zone that has covered all of the state except the Aleutian Islands since 1983.

The Standard Time Act of 1918 authorized the Interstate Commerce Commission to define each time zone. The United States Standard Alaska Time was designated as UTC−10:00.{{cite web |access-date=June 18, 2012 |access-date=June 18, 2012 |access-date=June 18, 2012 |access-date=June 18, 2012 |access-date=June 18, 2012

Prior to 1983, the current Alaska Time Zone (UTC−09:00) was known as the Yukon Time Zone, observing Yukon Standard Time (YST). This time zone included Canada's Yukon Territory and a small portion of Alaska including Yakutat. The Alaska Panhandle communities were in the Pacific Time Zone, while most of the interior was on UTC−10:00.{{cite journal |access-date = January 9, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120115013217/http://www2.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF5/597.html |archive-date = January 15, 2012 |url-status = dead

With the consolidation of Alaska's four time zones into two in 1983, the entire state was in either a zone based on UTC−09:00 or UTC−10:00. The Yukon Time Zone based on UTC−09:00 was later renamed the Alaska Time Zone in 1984.

Anomalies

The Alaska Time Zone applies to the territory of the state of Alaska east of 169°30′ W, that is, the entire state minus the westernmost portions of the Aleutian Islands. Solar time zones are 15° wide.

UTC−09:00 time corresponds to the solar time at 9 × 15° = 135° W (roughly, Juneau, which is in the southeast panhandle). Thus, the westernmost locales of the Alaska Time Zone are off by up to 169°30′ − 135° = 34°30′ from local solar time, or slightly more than 2 hours and 17 minutes. At noon Alaskan Time at a location just east of 169°30′ W, local solar time is only about 9:42 a.m. The sun will not reach culmination for another 2 hours and 18 minutes.

When UTC−08:00 is applied in the summer (because of daylight saving time), this effect becomes even more apparent. For example, on June 12 at noon AKDT, the solar time at the extreme westerly points of the Alaskan time zone will be only 8:42 a.m., nearly 3 hours and 18 minutes behind clock time.

Very few people notice this, however, as these locations are virtually uninhabited, and for the very few people who do live there, the long days in the summer and short days in the winter make the sunrise and sunset times less important than areas closer to the equator. By contrast, in Juneau, which is much closer to the 135° west meridian, mean solar noon occurs around 11:57 a.m., very close to noon on the clock.

In Anchorage, visitors from more southerly latitudes are often surprised to see the sun set at 11:41 p.m. on the summer solstice while the solar time is 9:41 p.m. Anchorage is at 150° W, one hour further west from the solar time for UTC−09:00. Thus, Anchorage is one solar hour behind the legal time zone and observes daylight saving time as well for a two-hour discrepancy between legal time and solar time. Some local residents refer to this phenomenon as "double daylight time".{{cite journal |access-date = January 9, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120106174619/http://www2.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF12/1278.html |archive-date = January 6, 2012 |url-status = dead

In Fairbanks, the same circumstances cause sunset to occur at 12:47 a.m. the next calendar day and the solar sunset is at 10:47 p.m. Even without daylight saving time, another anomaly is that on the winter solstice in Nome, the sunrise is after "noon" clock time, at 12:02 p.m., about 4 hours before sunset at 3:56 p.m.

The territory of the state of Alaska spans almost as much longitude as the contiguous United States (57.5° vs. 57.6°) so the use of only two time zones will inevitably lead to some distortions. Alaska would naturally fall into five time zones, with the greatest territory more correctly in UTC−10:00 and UTC−11:00, with Adak more correctly in UTC–12:00 and Cape Wrangell in UTC–13:00 as sunset can be late as midnight. But political and logistical considerations have led to the use of two time zones, leading to the distortions mentioned above.

Cities

• Anchorage, Alaska
• Fairbanks, Alaska
• Juneau, Alaska

References

References

1. Turner, Wallace. (November 1, 1983). "Alaska's Four Time Zones Now Two". [[The New York Times]].
2. "Official U.S. Time".
3. Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1984. Section 2003. {{usstat. 97. 1153