Military Time Chart

Military Time : How It Works, Who use it and Chart

Military time is the 24-hour clock used by the military and other organizations to measure time. It is also known as “Zulu time” or “GMT time.”

Military time chart table in image format

The 24-hour clock is a way of measuring time that is used by the military, emergency services, and other organizations. It is also known as “Zulu time” or “GMT time.” The 24-hour clock is a way of measuring time that is used by the military, emergency services, and other organizations.

Military time is measured from midnight to midnight, with each day starting at 0000 hours / minutes and ending at 2400 hours. The time is usually written in the form “hhmm” or “hh:mm.”

For example, the time “1230” would be written as “12:30” or “1230 hours.”

Military Time Chart

12hour am-pm clock24hour military time
12:00 midnight0000
1:00 AM0100
2:00 AM0200
3:00 AM0300
4:00 AM0400
5:00 AM0500
6:00 AM0600
7:00 AM0700
8:00 AM0800
9:00 AM0900
10:00 AM1000
11:00 AM1100
12:00 PM1200
1:00 PM1300
2:00 PM1400
3:00 PM1500
4:00 PM1600
5:00 PM1700
6:00 PM1800
7:00 PM1900
8:00 PM2000
9:00 PM2100
10:00 PM2200
11:00 PM2300
12:00 midnight2400

What is Military time?

There are two systems of keeping time in this globe, the 12- hour and the 24-hour. The 24- hour organization is reserved for keeping hours in military. Countries like United States, United Kingdom, Malaysia, Philippines, Jakarta, New Zealand, Australia and India use the 24-hour time structure or Military Time Format for the military and other emergency services. These countries have the 12-hour clock system to keep time for the civilians.

24 hours time

In the 12-hour clock arrangement, the day is divided into two – 12 hours from midnight to noon (anti meridian – AM) and 12 hours from noon to midnight again ( post meridian – PM). The military time is based on a 24-hour clock system. In this arrangement, the day runs from zero to 23 hours, i.e. midnight to midnight. Here midnight refers to 00:00 and the last minute of the day as 23:59. Sometimes midnight is also specified as 24:00 and it marks the end of the day (refer military time chart given below). For example, you would say that Wednesday ends at 24:00 tonight and Thursday begins at 00:00.

How to Read Military Time

Regular time (or the 12 hour clock) uses a.m. and p.m. to identify the time of the day. In military time, a unique two-digit number identifies the hours and minutes, which is why there is no need to use a.m./p.m.

03453:45 AM
225910:59 PM
002512:25 AM

With hypersensitive issues like military, the use of the 12 hour clock system can be quite cumbersome and dangerous. This can be quite confusing in a case like whether a time given is 12 in the midnight or in the noon.

Comparatively, in the 24- hour system of keeping time or by using the military time chart calculating duration is quite easy. Military time or astronomical time is divided into 24- hour increments and forms the international standard of time telling due to the rarity of its use.

Quarter, Half and minutes in Military Time :

Civilian TimeMilitary TimeCivilian TimeMilitary Time
12 MIDNIGHT240012 NOON1200
12:05 AM512:05 PM1205
12:15 AM1512:15 PM1215
12:25 AM2512:25 PM1225
12:40 AM4012:40 PM1240
01:00 AM10001:00 PM1300
02:00 AM20002:00 PM1400
03:00 AM30003:00 PM1500
04:00 AM40004:00 PM1600
05:00 AM50005:00 PM1700
06:00 AM60006:00 PM1800
07:00 AM70007:00 PM1900
08:00 AM80008:00 PM2000
09:00 AM90009:00 PM2100
10:00 AM100010:00 PM2200
11:00 AM110011:00 PM2300

FAQ

HOW TO PRONOUNCE MILITARY TIME

To pronounce the military time, you just have to read it like a number. However, there are different ways of pronouncing military time if it begins with a zero.

0800Zero Eight Hundred
1205Twelve Oh Five
1400Fourteen Zero Zero
1700Seventeen Hundred
2205Twenty Two Oh Five

When you speak of military time , suppose the time 5:00 would be stated as “zero five standard” or ” oh five standard”. In the military time chart, the time stamps are written without colon. For example, 07:00 is written as 0700. The time referencing the Greenwich Mean Time or GMT is denoted by a Z at the end, say 0700Z. Each military time zone has specific letters for denotation and a corresponding name for the same.

How to convert military time to civilian time?

Once you get a hang of the basics of military way of keeping time, converting it to the civilian way becomes quite easy. Here’s how to do it: The hours from 1 am in the night to the noon is same as civilian clock. The hours below 10 are denoted by adding a zero in front of them, such as, 8:00 am becomes 0800. When the military time is 1300 or larger, a subtraction of 1200 is done to get the basic time. For example, 1600 is 4:00 pm when 1200 is subtracted from it. Civilian time can be converted to military by simply adding 1200 to any time from 1 pm to 11 pm.

History of Military Time

The history of armed forces time can be dated back to the Early Egyptians in the 11th Dynasty. The opening night of a 24-hour clock was located on a coffin lid which is notoriously referred to as the Diagonal Star Table.

The Egyptians integrated the time system with certain patterns of constellations that travelled through the sky during the night. This system was defined by the various quantities of light strength that was present throughout the day and also season. The constellation patterns would eventually become a year with 360 days.

As world wars progressed, there were significant improvements from every nation in technique and also interaction. Among these enhancements being the adaptation of the 24 hour clock because the 12 hour clock posed excessive room for error. The United States Navy adopted the 24-hour system in 1920 and later on by the Army in 1942 and also till today Navy Seals established their watches to army time.