The arrival of fall is marked for Sunday morning, yet there remains over six weeks until the conclusion of Daylight Saving Time, when clocks will revert back one hour.
Daylight Saving Time is set to end at 2 a.m. on Sunday, November 3, 2024, providing the opportunity for an extra hour of sleep as clocks “fall back.”
Since the summer solstice on June 20, daylight hours have gradually reduced each day. The last sunset after 7 p.m. occurred on Tuesday. By the end of September, sunset will occur around 6:40 p.m.
Daylight will continue to decrease daily until the winter solstice on December 21, which will take place at 4:19 a.m. After the solstice, daylight will begin to increase again until the summer solstice on June 20, 2025.
After the shift back to standard time in November, mornings will see sunrise occur roughly one hour earlier. In New Jersey on November 2, sunrise will be around 7:29 a.m., and sunset will be at approximately 5:53 p.m. The following day, sunrise will occur at 6:30 a.m., but sunset will be at 4:52 p.m.
As a result, many commuters will tend to travel home from work primarily in darkness throughout November, although their morning journeys will benefit from increased daylight.
The next cycle of Daylight Saving Time begins on Sunday, March 10, 2024. Clocks will officially adjust backwards at 2 a.m. on the first Sunday in November to 1 a.m.
Daylight Saving Time began on March 10, 2024, and will conclude on November 3, 2024, totaling 238 days. Since 2007, it has been observed from the second Sunday in March until the first Sunday in November.
The clocks will spring forward again on March 9, 2025, which is 126 days after the fall back. The end of Daylight Savings in 2025 is set for November 2.
The idea of Daylight Saving Time has origins dating back over a century to 1907 when English architect William Willett proposed it in his work “The Waste of Daylight.” The concept of maximizing daylight was also suggested by Benjamin Franklin in 1784.
Daylight Saving Time became widespread in the U.S. following the Uniform Time Act of 1966, initially running from the last Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October, with states allowed to opt out. In 1986, the dates shifted to the first Sunday in April until the last Sunday in October. The current dates were established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, altering it to run from the second Sunday in March until the first Sunday in November.
Notably, Hawaii and most of Arizona do not participate in Daylight Saving Time, nor do U.S. territories such as Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Indiana began observing Daylight Saving Time only in 2006.
Eighteen states have passed laws to make Daylight Saving Time permanent, with California voters approving year-round observance, though these changes require federal consent.
In March 2022, the U.S. Senate passed the Sunshine Protection Act, aiming to eliminate the biannual clock changes, although the House of Representatives has yet to vote on it.
Approximately 70 countries follow Daylight Saving Time, with most of North America, Europe, parts of South America, and New Zealand participating, while countries like China, Japan, and India do not. The start dates vary globally; in Europe, it begins the last Sunday in March and concludes the final Sunday in October.