June 2024
Problem of the Month

From American Somoa to Fiji
Submitted by K. Sengupta, Calcutta, India

Fiji (in Melanesia) and American Samoa (in Polynesia) are two islands in the South Pacific Ocean.
Fiji is about 970 kilometers (600 miles) west of American Samoa.
Liam has a small airplane which can fly this distance in 2 hours.

Liam left American Samoa on his small airplane precisely at 11:30 PM on Wednesday, November 29.

Assuming a perfectly smooth ride, determine the exact local date and time when Liam arrived at Fiji.
Hint: Neither Figi nor American Samoa observe Daylight Savings Time.

Solution:

Liam arrives in Figi at 12:30 AM on Friday, December 1.

American Samoa's time zone is 11 hours behind UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) and American Samoa observes Samoa Standard Time all year --it does not observe Daylight Saving Time (DST).

Fiji is 12 hours ahead of UTC, and it operates on Fiji time all year, and it does not observe Daylight Saving Time (DST).

Liam left American Samoa at 11:30 PM on Wednesday, Nov 29 and since the trip takes 2 hours, it would be 1:30 AM on Thursday, Nov. 30, American Samoa Time when he arrives in Fiji.

Adding, 12 - (-11) = 23 hours to this, we obtain: 12:30 AM on Friday, December 1 in Fiji local time, when Liam arrived at Fiji.

Correctly solved by:

1. Seth Cohen	Concord, New Hampshire, USA
2. Davit Banana	Istanbul, Turkey
3. Kelly Stubblefield	Mobile, Alabama, USA

Send any comments or questions to: David Pleacher