Time Zones and Units

All of the data collected by CDIP is archived by the UTC time. While some of our web products are available for other time zones, many of CDIP’s files and products are tagged only with the UTC time.

What is Universal Time Coordinated (UTC)?

UTC is the time at 0 degrees longitude, a.k.a. GMT (Greenwich Mean Time).

UTC = US Eastern Standard Time (EST) + 5 hours or UTC = US Pacific Standard Time (PST) + 8 hours

For US Daylight Savings Time the difference is 1 hour less, e.g.,

UTC = EDT + 4 hours UTC = PDT + 7 hours

For the state of Hawaii

UTC = Hawaiian Standard Time + 10 hours

World UTC Table

UTC time difference for various locations through out the world.

Local Time

Geographic Zone

UTC-12

Eniwetok

UTC-11

Samoa

UTC-10

Hawaii

UTC-9

Alaska

UTC-8

PST, Pacific US

UTC-7

MST, PDT

UTC-6

CST, MDT

UTC-5

EST, CDT

UTC-4

Atlantic, Canada

UTC-3

Brazil, Buenos Aries

UTC-2

Mid-Atlantic

UTC-1

Cape Verdes

UTC

Greenwich Mean Time, Dublin

UTC+1

Berlin, Rome

UTC+2

Israel, Cairo

UTC+3

Moscow, Kuwait

UTC+4

Abu Dhabi, Muscat

UTC+5

Islamabad, Karachi

UTC+6

Almaty, Dhaka

UTC+7

Bangkok, Jakarta

UTC+8

Hong Kong, Beijing

UTC+9

Tokyo, Osaka

UTC+10

Sydney, Melbourne, Guam

UTC+11

Magadan, Soloman Is.

UTC+12

Fiji, Wellington, Auckland


PST,PDT

Pacific Standard/Daylight Time

MST,MDT

Mountain Standard/Daylight Time

CST,CDT

Central Standard/Daylight Time

EST,EDT

Eastern Standard/Daylight Time

Unit Conversions

CDIP archives its data in metric units. In the website’s Recent-Observed section - which displays the latest data from currently active stations - a number of products can be viewed using either English or metric units. On the nowcast swell models and forecast models English units are used, with wave heights measured in feet. Everywhere else on the site, metric units are used. Below is some conversion information that may help in interpreting data.

Length conversions

The primary unit of length used by CDIP is meters(m). To convert from

meters to feet, the formula is as follows: (feet) = 3.28 * (meters)

Meters to Feet Conversion Table

m

ft

1

3.3

2

6.6

3

9.8

4

13.1

5

16.4

6

19.7

7

23.0

8

26.2

9

29.5

10

32.8

11

36.1

12

39.4

When describing station locations and on maps, distances may given in miles(mi), nautical miles(nm), or kilometers(km). The conversions between these units are as follows: 1 mi = 1.61 km = 0.87 nm

Temperature conversions

The temperature unit used by CDIP is degrees Celsius(C). To convert from Celsius to Farenheit(F), the formula is as follows: (F) = (9/5)*(C) + 32

Celcius to Farenheit Conversion Table

C

F

0

32

5

41

10

50

15

59

20

68

25

77

30

86

35

95

40

104

45

113

50

122

55

131

Other conversions

  • Wind speed is archived in meters per second (m/s). 1 m/s = 1.94 knots = 2.24 miles per hour

  • Pressure is archived in millibars (mB). 1 mB = 0.0295 inches of Hg