Time in Massachusetts
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Time in Massachusetts, as in all US states, is regulated by the United States Department of Transportation.[1] Massachusetts is in the Eastern Time Zone (ET) and observes daylight saving time (DST).
| Time | UTC | |
|---|---|---|
| Standard time (winter) | Eastern Standard Time (EST) | UTC−05:00 |
| Daylight time (summer) | Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) | UTC−04:00 |
Independent of daylight saving time, solar noon on the March equinox is about 12:00 in Western Massachusetts and 11:47 in Nantucket to the east. New England, which includes Massachusetts, is one of the few areas in the United States where solar noon is before noon.
| Date (approx.) | Location | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsfield | Boston | Nantucket | |
| March equinox | 12:00 | 11:51 | 11:47 |
| June solstice | 11:55 | 11:46 | 11:42 |
| September equinox | 11:46 | 11:37 | 11:33 |
| December solstice | 11:51 | 11:42 | 11:38 |
In 2016, a committee in the state was formed to consider having Massachusetts adopt Atlantic Standard Time year round to prevent sunsets from occurring before 16:30 and eliminate the need to change clocks at the beginning and end of daylight saving time.[3] The committee submitted its report to the state legislature in November 2017, recommending the move "under certain circumstances".[4] If passed, Massachusetts would use Atlantic Standard Time all year round without daylight saving time. Other New England states are looking into doing the same.