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The time zones as originally defined are exactly 15 degrees of longitude wide. Distance between the limiting longitudes is at a maximum at the equator, and diminishes to zero at the poles.
The equator is about 24,902 statute miles long, so at the equator the time zones are about 1037.6 statute miles wide.
The Prime Meridian, or Greenwich Meridian, is the line of zero degrees longitude, and this same line on the other side of earth, 180 degrees longitude, is the International Date Line as originally defined. The Prime Meridian and the IDL are at the centers of their respective time zones, and the remaining time zones fit in accordingly.
There is no international law regulating the placement of the time zones. Nations all over the world have made changes according to their individual needs. This makes perfect sense, especially for nations that straddle the IDL. It makes no sense for a single state to have to deal perpetually with one part of the state being a day ahead of another part.
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EzraEach time zone is approximately 15 degrees of longitude wide, as the Earth rotates 360 degrees in 24 hours. This results in each time zone covering roughly 1,000 miles at the equator, but the width varies as you move towards the poles due to the convergence of the lines of longitude.
Standard time zones could be defined by geometrically subdividing the Earth's spheroid into 24 lunes (wedge-shaped sections), bordered by meridians each 15° of longitude apart. The local time in neighboring zones would differ by one hour, and the variation in the position of the sun from one end of the zone to the other (east vs. west) would be at most 1/24th of the sky. Most of the 25 nautical time zones (specifically UTC−11 to UTC+11) are indeed defined this way, and are 15° of longitude wide. An hourly zone in the central Pacific Ocean is split into two 7.5° wide zones (UTC±12) by the 180th meridian, part of which coincides with the International Date Line.
- Galapagos Time: 41 km (26 mi)
- Ecuador Time: 505 km (314 mi)
- Colombia Time: 616 km (383 mi)
- Western Brazil Time: 1241 km (771 mi)
- Eastern Brazil Time: 1061 km (659 mi)
- Greenwich Mean Time: 2 km (1 mi)
- West Africa Time: 1548 km (962 mi)
- Central Africa Time: 720 km (447 mi)
- East Africa Time: 1464 km (910 mi)
- Western Indonesia Time: 1857 km (1154 mi)
- Central Indonesia Time: 580 km (360 mi)
- Eastern Indonesia Time: 307 km (191 mi)
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If there were 20 time zones how wide would each time zone be?
Each time zone would be approximately 18 degrees wide, since the Earth has 360 degrees of longitude and is divided into 20 time zones.
What average time zone is about 360 degrees wide?
The average time zone is approximately 15 degrees wide, as the Earth rotates 360 degrees in 24 hours. Therefore, each time zone covers approximately 15 degrees of longitude.
Is a time belt is 15 degrees of latitude wide?
A time belt, or zone, is 15 degrees of longitude wide.
Is 15 degrees per hour rate of revolution the basis for the time difference between earth's adjoining time zone?
Yes, the Earth rotates 15 degrees per hour, leading to the creation of different time zones. Each time zone is approximately 15 degrees of longitude wide, resulting in a one-hour time difference for every 15 degrees of longitude.
Each time zone differs by how many hours?
Each time zone differs by one hour from the adjacent time zone. This is to account for the Earth's rotation which causes changes in daylight and nighttime across different regions of the world.
