# What time is it a mile east of me. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 12, 2019, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130 "2019-09-12T22:04:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ponderoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponderoid/32/19221_2.png) [@Ponderoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponderoid)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/21 "2019-09-13T12:36:52Z")
I came in to link that Tom Scott video but **Saint Cad** beat me to it. > [@mjmlabs](#): > > Well, it was fun for _me._ Was it also fun when you shot the bear? What color was it? Me too. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/22 "2019-09-13T12:38:51Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Thanks for the answers guys. > > So just to wrap my mind around this. Is a guy sitting at the equator spinning around on the planet faster than a guy siting in Alaska? Yes. That’s not just an odd bit of trivia, The difference between the speed of rotation at the equator and the speed at higher latitudes drives much of the Earth’s weather and ocean currents. An overly simple explanation: A mass of air at the equator is moving at about 1000 mph (1600 km/hr). If it moves north it passes over land that is not rotating as quickly as that, so begins to move from west to east. Similarly, a mass of air from the north that expands southward will begin to move from east to west. Voila, the clockwise motion of a hurricane. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/23 "2019-09-13T12:42:07Z")
> [@GaryM](#): > > In relation to what? Well, you got tow people that have traveled vastly different distances in the same 24hrs. So one of them has to be going faster right? Or am I missing something? ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/24 "2019-09-13T12:44:18Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > Yes. > > That’s not just an odd bit of trivia, The difference between the speed of rotation at the equator and the speed at higher latitudes drives much of the Earth’s weather and ocean currents. > > An overly simple explanation: A mass of air at the equator is moving at about 1000 mph (1600 km/hr). If it moves north it passes over land that is not rotating as quickly as that, so begins to move from west to east. Similarly, a mass of air from the north that expands southward will begin to move from east to west. Voila, the clockwise motion of a hurricane. Interesting. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/25 "2019-09-13T12:48:27Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Thanks for the answers guys. > > So just to wrap my mind around this. Is a guy sitting at the equator spinning around on the planet faster than a guy siting in Alaska? First, let’s ignore all the other ways that we’re moving. The earth is moving around the sun, the solar system is moving around the galaxy, and the galaxy is part of an expanding universe. If you take all of that movement into account, then where you’re standing on the earth’s surface is a pretty minor issue. But if we forget all of that, and just think about the earth as a closed system, then yes, the person at the equator has a linear speed, “through the air” as it were, that it faster than a person at 45[sup]o[/sup], who in turn has a liner speed faster than someone near the poles. The angular velocity is the same, because angular velocity is expressed as the number of degrees you move over a period of time (usually expressed in radians per second). So all (stationary) people in different parts of the world have the same angular velocity, but very different linear speeds. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/26 "2019-09-13T13:11:44Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Thanks for the answers guys. > > So just to wrap my mind around this. Is a guy sitting at the equator spinning around on the planet faster than a guy siting in Alaska? Correct, in one 24 hr rotation a point on the equator travels ~1,674 kilometers per hour (1,040 mph) while near the poles is ~0.00008 kph (0.00005 mph). ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/27 "2019-09-13T13:13:29Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > If I understand your question properly, the answer is going to depend quite a bit on your latitude. At / near the South Pole, one mile east is going to be quite a few time zones away. _At_ the South Pole, there is no east. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/28 "2019-09-13T16:08:49Z")
> [@psychonaut](#): > > _At_ the South Pole, there is no east. Sure, at the pole there is no east, west or south, only north… but he did say “near”. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/29 "2019-09-13T17:06:44Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/30 "2019-09-13T17:13:23Z")
The South Pole is on New Zealand time, so you know when to get your breakfast in the cafeteria, and so forth. The sun does not rise and set like you are used to, though. ---
**Author:** ![mjmlabs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mjmlabs/32/69_2.png) [@mjmlabs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mjmlabs)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/31 "2019-09-13T19:04:24Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > … yes, the person at the equator has a linear speed, “through the air” as it were, that it faster than a person at 45[sup]o[/sup], who in turn has a liner [_sic_] speed faster than someone near the poles. The angular velocity is the same, because angular velocity is expressed as the number of degrees you move over a period of time (usually expressed in radians per second). > > So all (stationary) people in different parts of the world have the same angular velocity, but very different linear speeds. … Which is one reason (of several) that NASA launches spacecraft from Florida (angled toward the east) and not from, say, Portland, ME, or Seattle. Every bit of escape velocity helps, and the Earth’s rotation is free. (As in “free beer,” not “degrees of freedom.”) ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2019, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/32 "2019-09-13T21:26:26Z")
Here’s the breakdown in intervals of 10º latitude: Lat N/S Solar seconds 1 mile E/W 0 3.469675936 seconds 10 3.52320128 seconds 20 3.692352009 seconds 30 4.006436671 seconds 40 4.529340258 seconds 50 5.397857525 seconds 60 6.939351872 seconds 70 10.14465377 seconds 80 19.98106737 seconds ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2019, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/33 "2019-09-14T05:07:53Z")
> [@AWB](#): > > Here’s the breakdown in intervals of 10º latitude: > > Lat > N/S Solar seconds 1 mile E/W > 0 3.469675936 seconds > 10 3.52320128 seconds > 20 3.692352009 seconds > 30 4.006436671 seconds > 40 4.529340258 seconds > 50 5.397857525 seconds > 60 6.939351872 seconds > 70 10.14465377 seconds > 80 19.98106737 seconds That is an awful lot of digits of precision there 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ynnad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/4491bb/32.png) [@Ynnad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ynnad)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2019, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/34 "2019-09-14T15:08:01Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > That is an awful lot of digits of precision there 🙂 The model geoid used by the United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency only has eight digits for the semi-major axis and thirteen digits for the semi-minor axis. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2019, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/35 "2019-09-14T16:15:36Z")
> [@Ynnad](#): > > The model geoid used by the United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency only has eight digits for the semi-major axis and thirteen digits for the semi-minor axis. The rotation of the Earth, and therefore mean solar time, is nowhere near that regular, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![bizerta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@bizerta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizerta)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2019, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/36 "2019-09-14T16:22:36Z")
> [@zimaane](#): > > … Voila, the clockwise motion of a hurricane. No, in the northern hemisphere, low pressure areas (e.g. hurricanes) rotate counterclockwise. High pressure systems rotate clockwise. As for the OP: (A) At the equator, the earth rotates about 1520 feet per second. Elsewhere the speed is 1520 FPS times the cosine of the latitude (e.g. at JFK airport, the speed is 1520 \* cos(40.64) = 1153 feet per second. (B) Nit Pick: there is no such time as 12pm. You probably mean 12 noon ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2019, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/37 "2019-09-14T20:29:56Z")
> [@bizerta](#): > > Nit Pick: there is no such time as 12pm. You probably mean 12 noon Counter Pick: According to the latest [US Government Printing Office Style Manual](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-STYLEMANUAL-2016/pdf/GPO-STYLEMANUAL-2016.pdf), 12 p.m. is a perfectly cromulent statement of time. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2019, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/38 "2019-09-15T03:24:57Z")
> [@ASL\_v2.0](#): > > Counter Pick: According to the latest [US Government Printing Office Style Manual](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-STYLEMANUAL-2016/pdf/GPO-STYLEMANUAL-2016.pdf), 12 p.m. is a perfectly cromulent statement of time. This has been discussed in various threads. “12 p.m.” may be “cromulent” (??), but when is it? Since nobody really knows for sure- and there is no way the US Government Publications have been consistent on this- it is best to avoid such designations. Having said that, a 12-hour digital clock will switch from “a.m.” To “p.m.” at the moment of noon, so you will see 12:00 pm when you look at it. ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2019, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/39 "2019-09-15T03:40:56Z")
> [@DPRK](#): > > “12 p.m.” may be “cromulent” (??) Clearly, you need to embiggen your vocabulary. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2019, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130/40 "2019-09-15T03:59:58Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > What time is it, Yogi? > > Yogi Berra: You mean now? [What time is it, Eccles](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctM_Rvgjfpo)? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-time-is-it-a-mile-east-of-me/840130.md?page=3)