Greenwich Mean Time Now

Current Local Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)

Greenwich Mean Time referred to as GMT, is the royal observatory in Greenwich, London. Although this means solar time, which is usually counted from midnight. Still, in the past, it was also calculated from noon and other various ways, which makes it useless when specifying a proper time without prior context. 

The term GMT is legally used in the United Kingdom as the basis of UK law and civil time. Greenwich Mean Time(GMT) can also be denoted as UTC+00:00. This is because English speakers often use Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) as a synonym for Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is considered completely wrong.

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is not only recognized as a standard time but also as one of the separate time zones in the world. 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is UT1? 

While navigation, travelers often used UT1, which is actually the modernized form of mean solar time at 0° longitude, as a replacement or equivalent of GMT/UTC. Later on, it was observed that there was a difference of 0.9 seconds between the two. So, if precision and accuracy are the critical aspects in carrying out a task, then UT1 cannot be used in place of Greenwich Mean Time. 

Why is the word “Mean” used in Greenwich Mean Time? 

As we know that the Earth has an uneven angular velocity due to its elliptical orbit and axial tilt, that is why noon, when the sun crosses Greenwich Meridian and reaches its highest point in the sky, is never at 12:00 GMT. The discrepancy has also been discussed by the equation of time, and it is always 16 minutes earlier or later than the 12:00 GMT noon. 

The solution devised for this discrepancy was to use the annual average (mean) of the noon GMT. This is the reason why the word “Mean” has been incorporated in the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) timezone. 

In which countries, Greenwich Mean Time is used as the standard time by law?

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is used as the standard timezone by law in the following countries and areas. These countries also move the clocks forward by one hour (GMT+1) in summers. 

1. The United Kingdom, it uses BST, termed as British Summer Time during the summers. 

2. Ireland, where GMT is used as winter time and during summers, it changes to standard time. 

3. Portugal except Azores 

4. The Canary Islands 

5. The Faroe Islands 

In which countries and areas Greenwich Mean Time is used as a standard time all around the year? 

Greenwich Mean Time is used in the following countries and areas throughout the year as a standard time: 

1. Burkina Faso 

2. The Gambia 

3. Ghana 

4. Guinea 

5. Guinea- Bissau 

6. Iceland 

7. Ivory Coast 

8. Liberia 

9. Mali 

10. Mauritania 

11. Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic 

12. Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunhamocratic Republic 

13. Senegal 

14. Sierra leone 

15. Togo 

What are the time zones with the GMT +0 offset?

Following are the timezone with a GMT+0 offset: 

• UTC - Universal Time Coordinated 
• GMT - Greenwich Mean Time 
• EGST - Eastern Greenland Summer Time 
• AZOST - Azores Summer Time 
• WT - Western Sahara Standard Time 
• Z - Zulu Time Zone 
• WET - Western European Time 

Is Greenwich Mean Time the same as the UK? 

No, the United Kingdom is not on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) all around the year; instead, it uses British Summer Time abbreviated as BST or Daylight Saving Time abbreviated as DST for its Summer months.

United Kingdom observed DST starting from March till October each year. Many people are still unaware of this fact that leads to a lot of confusion and time mismanagement. 

What is the name of the clock at the Royal observatory that shows Greenwich Mean Time in London? 

The Clock, which shows Greenwich Mean Time at the Royal Observatory in London, United Kingdom, is known as the “Shepherd Gate Clock.”

Does Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) still exist, or does UTC permanently replace it? 

Yes, although Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) has now been replaced by Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), but it still is used as the legal time in Britain during the winter season. It is also used by the Met Office, Royal Navy, and BBC World Service. 

Is GMT a 24 hour clock? 

Greenwich Mean Time is not just a 24 hour clock, but it is also a 12-hour time scale. Just because Greenwich Mean Time stands for point “0” on the 24 hours international timezone scale does not mean that we can always use it as a 24 hour clock. It can display both. 

Why did Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) replace Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)? 

Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) has a more accurate and scientific measurement of time. Moreover, it also differs from GMT due to a 24-hour system starting from midnight. That is the reason why Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) replaced Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). But it is not entirely replaced as it is used as a legal standard time in some parts of the world. 

How do you convert GMT to CST? 

The Central timezone is approximately 6 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT-6) during the standard winter months, also called as Central standard time (CST). In contrast, it is 5 hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) during the summer season, also known as the Central Daylight Time (CDT). 

What is the GMT-7 timezone? 

GMT-7 can also be written as “7 hours behind the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)”. It is actually a conversion of GMT/UTC to Pacific Timezone during Daylight Saving Time and to the Mountain Timezone during the Standard Time period when the DST isn’t applicable.

How is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) calculated? 

In order to calculate the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), we use the sun. As we know that the Prime Meridian is an imaginary line that cuts the earth into two equal and opposite halves: Western Hemisphere and Eastern Hemisphere.

When the Sun reaches its highest point above the Prime Meridian, it is said to be 12:00 noon in the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).  

If you want to know the local time of any other country in the World, then click here and find out the local time of the country of your choice.