Something has changed around 5 p.m. in New Jersey: Did you notice?

There's something different about New Jersey, and it has something to do with the time of day. Did you notice anything at all?

Probably not, but that's actually to be expected. You will eventually realize what happened at some point, but it's tough to notice at first.

And why 5 p.m.? Well, that time is significant when you compare it to around the date this article went up (notice the publishing date of Jan. 22).

Did you figure it out yet? It's OK if you didn't, as I'm sure many others haven't. Here are a few clues to zero in on what's so different.

Clue #1:

This thing that's different in our state actually occurs twice a year. The difference is, we only notice it immediately the second time it happens.

Think about it. What happens twice a year, but we really only notice immediately the second time around? Any ideas? Let's move on to the next clue.

Clue #2:

As mentioned above, this change occurs twice a year. And since this change just occurred recently (again, look at the published date of this article), it's only logical to ask when else it happens. And the answer to that is in autumn.

Clue #3:

That leads us to our next clue. This thing that involves the time of 5 p.m. also happens in New Jersey when we fall back in November.

Final Clue:

Throughout this article, the time 5 p.m. has been mentioned. Something changed in the fall that causes this event to happen before 5 p.m., and in January, the opposite happens with this thing happening after 5 p.m.

Did that help? What happens every day, but occurs before 5 p.m. in the fall across New Jersey, then after 5 p.m. in January. That question alone probably just gave it away.

Ready for the answer? Here it is.

The Sunset

The sunset is now officially after 5 p.m. in New Jersey. Since this change of time happens suddenly when we fall back, we tend to talk about how the sunset is no longer after 5 p.m. in November.

And because the sunset only changes by a minute or two each day, the difference is very gradual, rather than sudden when we fall back in autumn.

So there you go, our sunset is now past 5 p.m., and it will remain past 5 p.m. until the first day of standard time.

Hope you enjoyed playing along. And even more importantly, we hope you enjoy the brighter evenings and warmer days ahead.