Choose your viewpoint
Start above the South Pole, then select Arctic to look down from the opposite end of the Earth. The map changes direction while the simulated instant and selected clock stay the same.
The Turning Earth
Polar: the Earth as a clock face
Look down on the Earth from either pole, with the Sun at the top and midnight at the bottom. Switch between the South Pole and the Arctic. Replay 31 March 2026 to watch every sky hand point straight up at its own midnight.
The Earth from space. The dusk line sweeps in from the left and the gold arc marks midnight: each clock strikes its own midnight as the arc crosses it, and on 31 March 2026 every Crux hand reads exactly zero at that moment. Clocks over the edge of the Earth fade until it turns them back into view.
Both poles at once: the same Earth, the same moment, turning clockwise beneath the Southern Cross and anticlockwise beneath Polaris.
The Earth as a clock face, seen from above one pole, with the Sun held at the top and midnight at the bottom.
The world laid flat. The night shadow and the gold midnight line sweep west across the map, and each clock strikes its own midnight as the line passes beneath it, reading exactly zero on 31 March 2026.
The Sun sets the orientation
The Sun is held at the top of the dial and midnight at the bottom. Meridians radiate from the pole, letting you follow each clock as the Earth rotates beneath the Sun.
Read a selected meridian
Select one of the twenty-four clocks to see its local standard time, sky-hand angle and geographic location. Latitude positions the clock on the map; longitude determines its sky-hand reading.
Watch the calendar emerge
Use a faster playback speed and compare the sky hand at successive midnights. It advances by about one degree each day, which carries it through the month markings over the year.
The 24 midnight-zero meridians
Listed in the order midnight reaches them. Latitude never moves the hand, so each place is a real spot on its meridian. Your zone is highlighted.
| Zone | Meridian | Latitude | Place on the meridian | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UTC+12 | 178.7214° E | 17.70° S | Off Ovalau, Fiji | At sea, ~1.7 km off the west coast of Ovalau. |
| UTC+11 | 163.6804° E | 19.70° S | Belep Islands, New Caledonia | |
| UTC+10 | 148.6393° E | 33.00° S | Cumnock, New South Wales | Reference anchor: Parkes Observatory latitude, 35 km due east of the dish. |
| UTC+9 | 133.5982° E | 34.58° N | Okayama Astrophysical Observatory, Japan | The observatory dome is ~350 m west of the meridian. |
| UTC+8 | 118.5572° E | 32.07° N | Nanjing (Pukou), China | |
| UTC+7 | 103.5161° E | 13.41° N | Siem Reap Province, Cambodia | |
| UTC+6 | 88.4750° E | 24.37° N | Paba, Rajshahi, Bangladesh | |
| UTC+5 | 73.4340° E | 33.90° N | Murree, Pakistan | |
| UTC+4 | 58.3929° E | 23.59° N | Muscat (Bawshar), Oman | |
| UTC+3 | 43.3518° E | 43.49° N | Nizhny Chegem, Kabardino-Balkaria, Russia | |
| UTC+2 | 28.3108° E | 25.75° S | Pretoria (Mamelodi), South Africa | |
| UTC+1 | 13.2697° E | 52.52° N | Berlin (Charlottenburg), Germany | |
| UTC+0 | 1.7714° W | 51.17° N | Amesbury, Wiltshire (by Stonehenge) | |
| UTC−1 | 16.8125° W | 28.30° N | Santiago del Teide, Tenerife | No UTC-1 land on this meridian; the Canaries keep UTC+0. |
| UTC−2 | 31.8535° W | 72.58° N | Greenland ice sheet | |
| UTC−3 | 46.8946° W | 23.19° S | Jundiai, Sao Paulo, Brazil | |
| UTC−4 | 61.9357° W | 16.24° S | Concepcion, Santa Cruz, Bolivia | |
| UTC−5 | 76.9767° W | 38.90° N | Washington, D.C. | |
| UTC−6 | 92.0178° W | 30.22° N | Lafayette, Louisiana | |
| UTC−7 | 107.0589° W | 38.55° N | Gunnison County, Colorado | |
| UTC−8 | 122.0999° W | 37.39° N | Mountain View, California | |
| UTC−9 | 137.1410° W | 58.66° N | Mount Crillon, Fairweather Range, Alaska | |
| UTC−10 | 152.1821° W | 16.44° S | Off Maupiti, French Polynesia | At sea, ~5 km east of Maupiti reef. |
| UTC−11 | 167.2231° W | 53.60° N | Unalaska Island, Alaska | No UTC-11 land on this meridian; Alaska keeps UTC-9. |