The U.S. by 2 a.m. (8 a.m. Nigerian time) on Sunday, March 12, turned its clocks forward by an hour to Daylight Saving Time, from the Standard Time.
The change usually occurs at the second Sunday in March.
The people were reminded on Saturday night to set their clocks one hour ahead when they went to bed.
Daylight saving time is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times.
The period normally adds one hour to standard time with the purpose of making better use of daylight and conserving energy so that the sunrise and sunset are one hour later on the clock than the day before.
When local standard time is about to reach 2 a.m. (8 a.m. Nigerian), Sunday, March 12, 2017, clocks are turned forward by an hour to 3 a.m. (9 a.m. Nigerian), Sunday, March 12, 2017, local daylight time instead.
Sunrise and sunset will be one hour later on Mar 12, 2017 than the day before, while there will be more light in the evening.
In the U.S., this has the effect of creating more sunlight hours in the evening during months when the weather is the warmest.
Also called Spring Forward and Summer Time, daylight saving time ends on Nov. 5, 2017.
When local daylight time is about to reach 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5, clocks are turned backward by one hour to 1 a.m., Sunday, Nov. 5, local standard time instead.
Sunrise and sunset will be about one hour earlier on Nov. 5, 2017 than the day before, and there will be more light in the morning.
Also called Fall Back and Winter Time, daylight saving time changes do not necessarily occur on the same date every year.
In 2016, it was observed at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 13, while it reverted to standard time at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 6.
The transition from standard time to daylight saving time has the effect of moving one hour of daylight from the morning to the evening.
Similarly, the transition from daylight saving time to standard time effectively moves one hour of daylight from the evening to the morning.
Daily saving time was formally introduced in the U.S. in 1918 and most of the country and its territories currently observe the time.
However, it is not observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the state of Arizona, with the exception of the Navajo Indian Reservation.