Daylight saving time begins Mar. 9, 2025

Daylight saving time begins

It"s that time of year again—when clocks spring forward, stealing an hour of sleep but giving us longer evenings to enjoy. Daylight saving time (DST) starts today at 2 AM, reminding us that time, quite literally, waits for no one. The idea is simple: maximising daylight and reducing energy consumption by syncing our activities with the natural light cycle. This concept was popularised by Benjamin Franklin in the 18th century, though his suggestion to "save candles" was more satirical than a serious proposal. Fast forward to the early 20th century, and many countries adopted DST to conserve fuel during wartime. Today, DST runs from March to November in around 70 countries, giving us eight months of extended evening light.

© scaliger/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

A rainbow that’s worth the rainfall
Mar. 9, 2024Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness, New Mexico, USA

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Nov. 23, 2023Teide National Park, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain
A pair of high achievers
A flashy, frigid waterfowl
Jul. 10, 2025Independence Day of the Bahamas
Aug. 26, 2025Trullo buildings in Alberobello, Apulia, Italy
Apr. 5, 2025Gaztelugatxe islet at sunset, Basque Country, Spain
Like paint on a canvas
Oct. 2, 2023World Architecture Day
Jul. 14, 2024Baia del Silenzio in Sestri Levante, Italy
A view that’s out of this world
Pearl among the emeralds
Aug. 19, 2025Vancouver Island, British Columbia
Poetry in suspense
Dec. 23, 2024Celebrating Festivus
Mar. 18, 2024Elephant Rock, Al-Ula, Saudi Arabia
May 14, 2025Porto Flavia, Sulcis-Iglesiente, Sardinia, Italy
Sep. 16, 2024Wallabies at sunrise, Australia
May 3, 2025Happy International Astronomy Day!
Sep. 25, 2024Sequoia National Park, California, USA
International Archaeology Day
Feb. 6, 2024Lake Tahoe
Aug. 30, 2024International Whale Shark Day
A vibrant, sun-drenched island
Mar. 15, 2024Abbotsford, British Columbia
Jan. 18, 2024Pont Alexandre III, Paris, France
A temple to treasure
If these walls could talk...
Jul. 2, 2024Italica, an old Roman city in Santiponce, Andalusia, Spain
Dec. 29, 2023Oud-West neighbourhood, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Dec. 30, 2023Daiichi Tadami River Bridge, Fukushima, Japan