Military Time: What It Is and How It Works

What is Military Time?

Military time, also known as 24-hour time or the 24-hour clock, is a standard timekeeping system used by militaries, emergency services, and other organizations around the world. In this system, time is measured in hours from 00 to 23, rather than two sets of twelve hours. For example: . More about military time cc

• 12:00 AM (midnight) becomes 00:00
• 1:00 AM becomes 01:00
• 12:00 PM (noon) becomes 12:00
• 5 PM becomes 17:00
• 11 PM becomes 23:00

The Advantages of Military Time

Military time has several advantages over the commonly used twelve-hour clock system:

No Confusion Over AM or PM:

In military time, there's no need to specify whether it's morning or evening because every hour of the day has its own unique designation. This eliminates confusion about whether an event or appointment is scheduled for morning or afternoon.

No Need for Conversion:

In traditional clocks that use twelve-hour notation, people sometimes have to convert times between AM and PM format. However, this complication doesn't exist in military time. All you have to do is read the numbers as they are laid out.

A Universal System:

Military time is used globally by different industries such as transportation and healthcare. Thus making it easy for people in different locations around the world to communicate times effectively without any confusion.

Clock Conversions with Military Time

Want to convert a regular clock time into military time? Here are some steps:

To Convert a PM Time:

1. Subtract 12 from your clock hour
2. Add the letters "pm"

Example: Convert 5:00 PM to Military Time.

Subtract 12 to get 5:00 ==> = 17:00. Add "pm" and your new military time becomes "1700 hours."

To Convert an AM Clock Time:

1. Military morning times are simply set at just the same number as their standard format. Thus, for any hour between midnight (1 a.m.) and noon (12 p.m.), there's no need for conversion or calculations, as it's equivalent. Simply change am format to hours in Military Time.

Example: Convert 9 AM to Military Time.

Your number stays the same when changing from am to military time. Thus it's"0900 hours."

In Conclusion

In conclusion, if you want simplicity, universality, and consistency in tracking your day-to-day activities with ease of use anywhere around the world then opting-in for military time conversion is highly recommended.