Question

All > Science

JDBoDean: 1 year ago via iPhone

Why is UMT also called "Zulu" time? I understand it has to do with words representing letters but what is the significance of "Z" ?

I know there are 24 time zones around the world but with 26 letters in the alphabet why Z and not x?

Answer This Question

Report as

Answer 1

crowtrobot: 1 year ago

The UTC [Universal Coordinated Time] time zone is sometimes denoted by the letter Z – a reference to the equivalent nautical time zone (GMT), which has been denoted by a Z since about 1950. The letter also refers to the "zone description" of zero hours, which has been used since 1920...Since the NATO phonetic alphabet and amateur radio word for Z is "Zulu", UTC is sometimes known as Zulu time. This is especially true in aviation, where Zulu is the universal standard.[10] This ensures all pilots regardless of location are using the same 24-hour clock, thus avoiding confusion when flying between time zones.

Read more: Why is GMT called Zulu time? | Answerbag http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/396916#ixzz1u5xPg9WP

Helpful (2) Fun Thanks for voting Comments (1)

Report as

JDBoDean: 1 year ago via iPhone

Thanks for the explanation and the link. Previously when I asked people (even military people)I would get a vague answer like "that's just what they call it in the Navy" or "it's slang" etc.

Report as

Add a comment...