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New Year's Eve countdowns around the world
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New Year’s Eve countdowns around the world

By sdlocal / December 31, 2020

The Pacific Island nations of Tonga, Samoa and Kiribati were the first to see in the new year — when it was still 5 a.m. on December 31 on the East Coast of the United States and 11 a.m. UTC (Coordinated Universal Time, the global standard). New Zealand was next, an hour later.

American Samoa, just 101 miles from Samoa but in an entirely different timezone, must wait a full day before seeing in 2021.
There are 39 different local times in use — including two which are more than 12 hours ahead of UTC — which means it takes 26 hours for the entire world to enter the New Year.
So, if you really, really, really love to hum “Auld Lang Syne,” the list below will get you in the spirit — over and over and over again.

Here’s when the world has been and will be ringing in the New Year, relative to East Coast time.

Tuesday, December 31, 2019

5 a.m. ET Samoa, Tonga and Christmas Island/Kiribati

5:15 a.m. Chatham Islands/New Zealand

6 a.m. New Zealand (with a few exceptions) and five more locations/islands

Fireworks explode over Hagley Park in Christchurch, New Zealand, during New Year 2021 celebrations. New Zealand and its South Pacific island neighbors have no COVID-19, and New Year celebrations there are the same as ever.

7 a.m. Small region of Russia and seven more locations

8 a.m. Much of Australia and seven more (including Melbourne and Sydney)

Fireworks explode over the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge to ring in 2021. One million people would usually crowd the Sydney Harbor to watch the annual fireworks that center on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. But this year authorities advised revelers to watch the fireworks on television.

8:30 a.m. Small region of Australia (including Adelaide)

9 a.m. Queensland/Australia and six more (including Brisbane)

9:30 a.m. Northern Territory/Australia (including Alice Springs)

10 a.m. Japan, South Korea and four more

10:15 a.m. Western Australia/Australia

11 a.m. China, Philippines and 10 more

Noon Much of Indonesia, Thailand and seven more

12:30 p.m. Myanmar and Cocos Islands

1 p.m. Bangladesh and six more

1:15 p.m. Nepal

1:30 p.m. India and Sri Lanka

2 p.m. Pakistan and eight more

2:30 p.m. Afghanistan

3 p.m. Azerbaijan and eight more

3:30 p.m. Iran

4 p.m. Moscow/Russia and 22 more

5 p.m. Greece and 31 more (including Egypt, South Africa and Romania)

6 p.m. Germany and 45 more (including Algeria, Italy, Belgium and France)

7 p.m. United Kingdom and 24 more (including Portugal and Iceland)

8 p.m. Cabo Verde and two more

9 p.m. Regions of Brazil and South Georgia/Sandwich Islands

10 p.m. Most of Brazil, Angetina and nine more

10:30 p.m. Newfoundland and Labrador/Canada

11 p.m. Some regions of Canada and 28 more

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Midnight US (East Coast) and Cuba

1 a.m. US (Central), Mexico and nine more

2 a.m. US (Mountain) and two more

3 a.m. US (Pacific) and four more

4 a.m. US (Alaska) and regions of French Polynesia

4:30 a.m. Marquesas Islands/French Polynesia

5 a.m. US (Hawaii) and two more

6 a.m. American Samoa and two more

7 a.m. Much of US minor outlying islands (unincorporated US territories in the Pacific)

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