It is the time indicated by a sundial.

• A. Local Apparent Time
• B. Local Solar Time
• C. Universal Time
• D. Greenwich Mean Time

Answer: (A)

A sundial shows time based on the Sun’s true position in the sky at your location, so the reading is Local Apparent Time. This is the solar time that corresponds to the Sun’s actual hour angle: when the Sun crosses your local meridian, it’s noon in apparent solar time. Because the Earth’s orbit is elliptical and its axis is tilted, the Sun’s speed in the sky varies slightly over the year, so apparent solar time can differ from mean solar time by the equation of time. Civil time in a time zone is tied to mean solar time at a reference longitude, not to the Sun’s instantaneous position, which is why sundial readings don’t usually match clocks exactly. Universal Time and Greenwich Mean Time are global time scales anchored to a reference meridian and the mean Sun, not to the Sun’s current position in your sky, so they aren’t what a sundial indicates.