Earth Hour 2013

Earth Hour, the time of the year when the whole world unites to protect our planet Earth. The mission which started from one city has grown to 152 countries! 
It shows that we are concerned and together we can inspire change, big or small, to change the world we live in. 

Earth Hour 2013 will be held on Saturday March 23 at 8:30pm-9:30pm, switch off the lights wherever you are in the world. Please get informed, educate others and contribute your bit towards saving our planet.

Know more about Earth Hour at www.earthhour.org

Join Earth Hour and be a part of global community

What is a Leap Second?

June 30th, 2012 will be longer by a Second! That means your weekend is going to extend for one more Second! What does that mean? 


Global time keepers are adding One Second to UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) which is often referred as Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). This added Second is called the Leap Second

Why are the Leap Seconds added?
The Earth's rotation around its own axis determines the length of the day. This rotation of the Earth is slowing down very gradually and at an unpredictable pace. The gravitational pull of ocean tides, the sun and the moon all affect its rotation ever so slightly. According to the US Naval Observatory, our planet is decelerating by about 1.4 milliseconds per day each century. 
So, leap seconds are a means to adjust our clocks to the Earth's slowing rotation.


How many Leap Seconds have been added till now?
This adjustment began in 1972 by The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS) . A total of 24 leap seconds have been added to the clock since. This will be the 25th Leap Second 


When are the Leap Seconds added?

Leap seconds are inserted at the end of the last day in June or December. When that is the case, UTC ticks from 23:59:59 to 23:59:60 before reverting to 00:00:00 (in the 12-hour format, this corresponds to 11:59:59 pm - 11:59:60 pm - 12:00:00 midnight). When that happens the last minute of the month has 61 instead of 60 seconds.

Longest Day of the Year

Today is the longest day of the Year. Am re-posting this post on this occasion

June 21st,the longest day of the year. This day marks the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere and the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere. That means this is the day of the year with the longest hours of daylight in the northern hemisphere and the shortest in the southern hemisphere.
Let us understand this in simple words.
The earth's axis is tilted 23.5 degrees from earth sun plane. Thanks to the tilt we enjoy the four seasons. For several months of the year one half of the earth receives more direct rays of the sun than the other half.

In summer solstice,the earth's tilt is towards the sun as we can see above.The sunlight strikes more directly to the northern hemisphere making the length of the day longer.
In winter solstice,the tilt is away from the sun and the southern hemisphere enjoys direct sunlight in their summer months. It falls on the December 21st in northern hemisphere which marks the shortest day of the year.

Longest day of the year is here!

June 21st,the longest day of the year. This day marks the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere and the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere. That means this is the day of the year with the longest hours of daylight in the northern hemisphere and the shortest in the southern hemisphere.
Let us understand this in simple words.

The earth's axis is tilted 23.5 degrees from earth sun plane. Thanks to the tilt we enjoy the four seasons. For several months of the year one half of the earth receives more direct rays of the sun than the other half.

In summer solstice,the earth's tilt is towards the sun as we can see above.The sunlight strikes more directly to the northern hemisphere making the length of the day longer.
In winter solstice,the tilt is away from the sun and the southern hemisphere enjoys direct sunlight in their summer months. It falls on the December 21st in northern hemisphere which marks the shortest day of the year.

As for now watch out for the "longest day" coming Sunday!

Earth Hour 2009

On March 28, 2009 at 8:30 p.m., hundreds of millions of people in more than 750 cities and 80 countries around the world will come together once again to make a bold statement of concern about climate change by turning off their lights for one hour - Earth Hour. An event that symbolizes by working together, each of us can make a positive impact in the fight against climate change and global warming.

Earth Hour, an international event held on the last Saturday of March, began in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour. In 2008 the Earth Hour went global. More than 400 cities, thousands of businesses and over 50 million people switching off their lights.

In 2009, Earth Hour is being taken to the next level, with the goal of 1 billion people switching off their lights as part of a global vote. Unlike any election in history, it is not about what country you are from, but what planet you are from. VOTE EARTH is a global call to action for every individual, every business, and every community. A call to stand up and take control over the future of our planet. Over 80 countries and territories have pledged their support to VOTE EARTH during Earth Hour 2009, and this number is growing everyday.

We all have a vote, and every single vote counts. Together we can take control of the future of our planet, for future generations.

VOTE EARTH by simply switching off your lights for one hour, and join the world for Earth Hour.

Saturday, March 28, 8:30-9:30pm local time.