Apparent solar time

Apparent solar time is the way you tell what time it is by looking at the position of the Sun in the sky. It's like having a really big clock in the sky!

When the Sun is directly overhead where you are, it's called "noon." But the time the Sun is directly overhead changes depending on where you are in the world and what time of year it is. If you're really far north, the Sun may never be directly overhead and if you're really close to the equator, it may be overhead all the time!

So, to tell what time it is, you have to look at the position of the Sun and see how it has moved since noon. But, the Earth is constantly moving around the Sun, so sometimes the Sun seems to move faster or slower in the sky. This means that the time when the Sun is directly overhead (noon) might not be the same as the time on your clock!

To make things even more complicated, we've also decided to have time zones where everyone in a certain area uses the same clock time. This means that even if the Sun is directly overhead where you are, it might not be the same time as someone across the country who is in a different time zone.

So, apparent solar time is really just a way of telling time based on the position of the Sun in the sky. But because the Earth moves and we have time zones, it's not always the same as the time on your clock.