3.8 km distance between the two islands, but 20 hours time difference!
MOSCOW / WASHINGTON: There are two small islands in the Bering Sea near the North Pole that are only 3.8 kilometers apart, but still have a full 20-hour time difference.
That is, if it is 12 o’clock at night on one island, it will be 8 o’clock the next night on the other island at the same time.
Collectively known as the “Diomedes”, the largest of these islands (Big Diomedes) is located in Russian waters, while the smaller (Little Diomedes) is located in US waters.
This is the reason why there is such a big difference in the time of these two islands.
Due to its location within the Russian territory, the large island of Big Domeid is subject to the Petropavlovsk Kamchatsky Standard Time, which is 12 hours ahead of world standard time.
In contrast, the Pacific Standard Time is applied to the small island of Little Domeid, which is 8 hours behind world standard time, due to its location within the US territory.
Thus, despite being only 3.8 kilometers (2.4 miles) apart, the two islands have very different times.
