I would like to thank everyone who attempted to define "midnight." I am more confused than ever. Some scientific sources indicate say that it is either the beginning of the day. Other scientific sources say that midnight takes place at the beginning of the day and the end of the day, indicating that there are two midnights per day. Specifically, I would like to thank: Andrea Battel; Greg Lambert; John Perkins; Sarah Sabasteanski; Vincent Ramette; Carolyn; Santanella, and Wilson Addo. The responses were as follows:
I made a research on that subject a few years ago ; as far as I remember,
the difference lies in which system you use to define the day : under the
GMT system the day starts just after 2400, but under the universal time
(UT1) system, the day starts just after 1200 (Greenwich Time anyway).
According to the New York Public Library Desk Reference (pg. 3) Midnight = 12 A.M. And on page 2 it says: "The standard measurement of the day is from midnight to midnight."
I was trying to remember back to my Army days and seem to recall that there is no "0000 hours". I did a little search on the CFR's and found something that might indirectly answer the 2400 or 0000 issue: (ii) Beginning and ending report period: Midnight, 2400 hours, September 30 of the Preceding Year--OR--0001 hours, October 1 is the beginning of the report period. Midnight, 2400 hours, is the close of the reporting period.
32 CFR § 286.33. It seems to me that Midnight is the previous day, and 0001 is the next day.
I don't know if this makes sense to you, but "Midnight" means (dictionary) middle of the night:12 o'clock at night (universal meaning).
27 Words and Phrases 154 (Supp. 2001)
Conn. 1973. "Midnight" is a point in time and not a period of time and where it is statutorily defined as being shared by two days, licensor, giving notice of termination of license effective at midnight, need not be said to have elected to treat midnight as a moment contained in only one day but could be said to have terminated the license on the date required by license agreement. General Construction Law N.Y. s.19 -- Avis Rent-A-Car System, Inc. v. Crown High Corp. 345 A.2d 1, 165 Conn 608 -- Time 8.
N.Y.Sup. 1975. Term "midnight," as used in automobile insurance policy, meant end of named day and not 12:01 a.m. on named dat, and policy which was to become effective on midnight of December 31, therefore was not in effect at 11:15 p.m. on that day. General Construction Law ss. 19, 20 -- Leatherby Ins. Co. v. Villafana, 368 N.Y.S. 2d 102, 82 Misc 2d 144 -- Insurance 2647.
According to Greenwich mean time and the US Naval Observatory, the day
starts @ Midnight. AM starts immediately after that point. Midnight belongs
to no day, but the day begins at Midnight. So, in my example, Dec. 20th at
Midnight, is 1 minute after Dec. 19th ends.
http://greenwichmeantime.com/info/timezone.htm
Time is the issue here. Maybe this can provide an answer. If not, at least it's fun to see!
Gene Preudhomme
New York Supreme Court Appellate Division
First Department Library
27 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10010
(212) 340-0478
genep@ix.netcom.com
----- Original Message -----
From: Gene Preudhomme
To: law-lib@ucdavis.edu
Cc: Gene Preudhomme
Sent: Friday, May 31, 2002 11:27 AM
Subject: Common Usage Definition of "Midnight"
I have found that the scientific and mathematic definition of "midnight" is either the beginning of the day or the end of the day. For instance, The New York Public Library Science Desk Reference (Stonesong Press, 1995, p. 73) states that "midnight can be designated as 2400 hour of that day, or 0000 hours of the following day." However, I am looking for the common usage definition. Hongkong Online Style Tips (www.hkbu.edu.hk/~jour/style/host_M.html), the on-line version of The Young Reporter Style Book, states that "midnight by tradition is the end of the day, not the beginning of the next one. So if you are writing on Monday morning 'midnight yesterday' means the midnight which just passed, and 'midnight tomorrow' means Tuesday night." I am seeking a similar common usage definition from a more recognized source. Any help in this matter would be greatly appreciated.
Gene Preudhomme
New York Supreme Court Appellate Division
First Department Library
27 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10010
(212) 340-0478
genep@ix.netcom.com
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