Photo of the Day – Apia, Samoa
A bungalow at historic Aggie Grey's Hotel
So, which country is the first to ring in each New Year? Well, surprisingly, it depends. Primarily on the complexities of the international dateline and the whims of the island nations that surround it. For the past several years, it’s been the island nation of Kiribati. But thanks to Western Samoa’s recent decision to change its time zone to better communicate with key neighbors Australia and New Zealand, the enitre country will reset its clocks on December 30, 2011 -bypassing the 31st entirely – and be the first to welcome 2012. (Despite the fact that it currently sits 20 miles east of the dateline.) How does this dateline hopping work, exactly? The idea of a 24-hour clock for the world dates back to 1884′s International Meridien Conference. The longitude 0° starting point – a prize awarded to Greenwich, in London – meant that the imaginary dateline (longitude 180°) would run through the Pacific Ocean. An exact course for the dateline was never mandated and over the years it has zigged and zagged to the convenience of the nations it crosses (for example, to the west to keep the Hawaiian islands in line with U.S. time). While Samoa’s recent decision is rooted in practicality, the festive side effects will allow them to be the first to ring in the New Year…for now.
