Daylight Saving Time 2017: When To Turn Clocks Back

Iowa's nights are about to get longer and darker as we "fall back" into standard time. Daylight Saving Time ends for most of the United States at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 5, which means you'll want to turn your old-school clocks back before you go to bed Saturday night, Nov. 4.

"Falling back" to Standard Time — that is, setting the clock back one hour — means you'll be able to pack in an extra hour of fun with friends and family on Saturday or languish in bed for an extra hour on Sunday morning, unless you have small kids, who don't acknowledge the time change.

Of course, the change is automatic for most smartphones, computers, tablets and other digital devices. Daylight saving time — called daylight "savings" time by some — moves the clocks forward one hour from standard time during the summer months, and back again in the fall, to make better use of natural daylight.
The good news for the early risers is sunrise will be about an hour earlier and there will be more light in the mornings — but it also means sunset will be around 5 p.m. depending on your location.

The daylight will dwindle over the next two months (they don't begin lengthening again after the Winter Solstice on Thursday, Dec. 21), the loss of an hour of daylight means many Americans in the Eastern and Central Standard Time zones will be leaving their workplaces around sunset. And that can spell some danger.
In general, deer are most active between dusk and 11 p.m., and they're especially frisky at this time of year. It's prime breeding season — you may have heard it referred to as "in rut" — and they run about more wildly than usual, increasing the chances of a collision.

So slow down, know that if you see one deer more are likely to follow, pay attention to deer crossing signs and use your high beams — unless you're meeting an oncoming car, of course — to increase your chances of spotting them. Brake if you can, but don't swerve, because that could result in a more serious collision.
The risk of hitting a deer may be especially heightened, depending upon where you live.

Shorter days and the end of daylight saving time are associated with SAD (seasonal affective disorder), a form of clinical depression that is believed to affect about 5 percent of the U.S. population; it may set in as people have less daylight to enjoy after they got off work. To combat the depression, the Mayo Clinic recommends outdoor activity, especially within two hours of awakening; exercising regularly; opening blinds and window shades to let light inside; light therapy; medications; and psychotherapy.

What to do with your extra hour?

the time change is a good time to also change smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector batteries and check to make sure those devices are in working order, according to fire officials.

Arizona, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, U.S. Virgin Islands and American Samoa do not observe daylight saving time.
Check the exact time the sun sets after the fall back from Daylight Saving Time.

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