Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity states that time can be experienced differently by two people. It is no longer thought of as an absolute quantity, but depends on the timekeeper’s point of view. Did we really need an Einstein to tell us that?

Any single instant in time is experienced and described uniquely by everyone in the world. The moment that is noon in Boston, USA, is called 7:00 pm in Cairo, Egypt, and means something very different for an Egyptian and a Bostonian. The person in Boston may be getting ready for lunch while the Egyptian may be finishing dinner. They both experience the same instant at the same time, but they call it by different names (noon and 7:00 pm).

The following links will take you to cameras covering various cities on Earth. Travel the globe over the Internet and see the variety in the exact same hour.


New Zealand
Sydney, Australia
Tokyo, Japan
Hong Kong, China
Bangkok, Thailand
Casey Station, Antarctica
Karachi, Pakistan
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Zanzibar, Tanzania
Beirut, Lebanon
Jerusalem, Israel
Alexandria, Egypt
Moscow, Russia
Prague, Czech Republic
Tromso, Norway
Dublin, Ireland
Lagos, Nigeria
Nuuk, Greenland
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Chicago, USA
Seattle, USA

Questions

How does the daylight change throughout the world?
How does the activity shown by these webcams change throughout the world?
What happens in Africa while you’re in school? In Asia? At the South Pole?
If you are checking these links in the summer, why does Antarctica look the way it does when it is 1:30 pm in the United States?
If you are checking these links in the winter, why does Tromso, Norway, look the way it does when it is 1:30 pm in the United States?