2020 Daylight Saving Time Ends Sunday

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Cary, NC — Sunrise and sunset times will be one hour earlier with less light in the evenings here in Cary and across the country starting this Sunday.

The official time to turn the clocks back an hour is at 2 AM this Sunday, November 1. While there’s a brief, glorious benefit of an extra hour of sleep, we are once again in for shortened daylight.

It will begin to get darker earlier in the day and the amount of daylight will shorten each day until the winter solstice on December 21, 2020. Daylight saving time will begin again when clocks “spring forward” on March 14, 2021.

Digging a bit deeper into Daylight Saving Time, here are a few interesting tidbits on its practice.

Fun Facts on DST

  • In August 2020, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine released a statement saying public health and safety would benefit from eliminating daylight saving time.
  • Less than 40% of the countries in the world observe the practice of Daylight Saving Time.
  • As of 2014, the following states and territories are not observing DST: Arizona, Hawaii, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
  • Daylight Saving Time was first enacted by the federal government on March 19, 1918, during World War I, as a way to conserve coal.
  • Some countries use it to make better use of natural daylight in the evenings.
  • The difference in light is most noticeable in the areas at a certain distance from Earth’s equator.
  • Some studies show that DST could lead to fewer road accidents and injuries by supplying more daylight during the hours more people use the roads.
  • Other studies claim that people’s health might suffer due to DST changes.
  • DST is also used to reduce the amount of energy needed for artificial lighting during the evening hours.

Story and photos by Ashley Kairis.

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