Understanding the Difference Between BST and GMT: A Quick Guide

Learn why British Summer Time (BST) is different from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and how they relate to each other.

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BST (British Summer Time) and GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) differ in their application and time periods. BST is used in the UK during the summer months to make better use of daylight, moving the clocks forward one hour from GMT. GMT, however, remains constant throughout the year, serving as the baseline time zone from which others are calculated. Hence, BST is essentially GMT+1 during the summer.

FAQs & Answers

  1. What is the full name of BST? BST stands for British Summer Time, which is observed in the UK during the summer months.
  2. When does BST start and end? BST starts on the last Sunday in March and ends on the last Sunday in October.
  3. Why do we use BST instead of GMT in summer? BST is used to take advantage of longer daylight hours during the summer, shifting the clocks forward to maximize evening daylight.
  4. How does GMT serve as a baseline? GMT serves as a constant reference time zone from which other time zones are calculated and does not change throughout the year.