What is Russia's time difference with Spain?

Of course, going on vacation, especially in sunny Spain, do not want to think about time. But it is necessary. Many Russians generally do not have the habit of rearranging the hands of their watches at the local time. And they get into stupid situations because of this. Russia has a difference with Spain not only in the climate, standard of living, traditions, but also in time. Countries are in different time zones, and in this article we will tell you in which. The time difference between Russia and other countries is not such a simple question, as it seems at first glance. After all, there are several time zones in the Russian Federation. And in Spain? It turns out, too. All these temporary nuances need to be taken into account so as not to wake your acquaintance with an unexpected call in the middle of the night.

What is UTS

To understand why Russia has a time difference with Spain, it is first necessary to clarify the general question: why in the countries of the world the hands of the clock are not synchronized? The earth rotates around its axis, so it seems to us that the sun is moving across the sky from east to west. And when it's already evening in Tokyo, it's not yet light in New York. The world map is divided into time zones. And the fundamental standard is Universal Time - UTS. It is calculated from the Greenwich meridian, passing near London. Thus, all the territories located along it are in the time zone of UTS + 0. Countries east of Greenwich live on time UTS + 1, 2, 3 and so on, depending on how far they are from the UK. And the territories located to the west, on the contrary, take away the hours of English time. They live in the belts of UTS-1, 2, 3 ...

Time difference with Spain

If we look at the map of Europe, we will see that most of the Iberian Peninsula lies to the west of Greenwich. Madrid, for example, is at the third degree of western longitude. It would seem that Spain should live in the same time zone with the UK. But the UTS standard is very often associated with politics. As a member of the European Union, Spain prefers to exist in one time zone with its eastern neighbors. Therefore she lives in UTS + 1. It is strange that in both Poland and Spain the time is the same. The western part of the Russian Federation is in the belt of UTS + 3. It turns out that the hourly difference with Spain from Moscow and St. Petersburg - only two units. But not everything is so simple. The UTS standard does not take into account the conversion of the clock to daylight saving time. After all, it is focused on the "true noon." That is, the time is calculated when the sun reaches the zenith (twelve o'clock in the afternoon).

Why did countries switch to summer time

Does Russia have a time difference with Spain relative to the time of the year? In many countries lying in high latitudes, the duration of a light day depends on the season. In order to coordinate time with the administrative regime and thereby save on electricity consumption in enterprises, the governments of these states decided to switch the timers' arrows in the spring one hour ahead, and in autumn to return them back. This manipulation was first conducted by Germany, as well as by its allies during the First World War in 1916. Then the country of the Entente followed its example, despite the political opposition. The Soviet Union (and then Russia) since 1981 has moved the arrows forward every spring. But from July 1, 2014, the Russian Federation refused this idea. Now the western part of the country exists all year round in UTS + 3. Regarding Moscow, its time is calculated and the eastern regions of Russia. They add an hour to it. But Spain, despite the fact that it lies in the southern latitudes, is practicing the transition to summer time. All the warm period she lives in UTS + 2.

Winter

Let's start with a simple one. What is the time difference with Spain from Russia in the period from November to the end of March? Then both countries live on a "true noon." Here everything, in general, is simple. By a simple arithmetic operation (3 - 1 = 2) we get the result. When it's midday in Moscow, it's ten in the morning in Madrid. We sorted out the capitals. And what are the temporary differences between other regions? You should know that Spain does not have all the territories within UTS + 1. The Canary Islands are located in the Atlantic Ocean far west of the Iberian Peninsula. And the Tenerife resort lives in UTS + 0 - that is, according to British time. What kind of arithmetical actions should we do to find out how many hours in the Canary Islands in winter, if in Krasnoyarsk noon? First, we are equal to Moscow. Krasnoyarsk is UTS + 7. From seven to take three - comes four. It's eight in the morning in Moscow. We'll give up two more hours. There are six in Madrid. And in Tenerife for an hour less - five.

Time difference with Spain in summer

This Pyrenean country translates the hour hands forward every last Sunday in March. Consequently, in the period from April to the end of October, the calculation of the temporary difference varies. In summer, mainland Spain lives in UTS + 2. And the western part of the Russian Federation continues to exist in UTS + 3. Consequently, the time difference between countries will be only one hour. And when the noon breaks in Moscow, the Canary Islands will be ten in the morning.