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Daylight saving time ends Sunday, Nov. 3. That means most Americans will set their clocks back an hour, technically at 2 a.m. The switch to standard time means we’ll have an hour less daylight at the end of the day and an hour more in the morning.

The controversial practice of “springing forward” and “falling back” has been observed in most states for decades. Under the current daylight saving time period, most Americans lose an hour of sleep on the second Sunday of March and gain an hour the first Sunday of November.

So why do we “fall back” and “spring forward”? Here’s what to know about the origins of daylight saving time.

Daylight saving time ends Nov. 3 at 2 a.m. We will “fall back,” turning our clocks back to 1 a.m., gaining an extra hour of sleep.

Daylight saving time was introduced in the United States in 1918 with the Standard Time Act, which was meant to lower fuel costs during the First World War. The law also established a standard time and allowed the government to create five time zones.

The government stopped observing daylight saving time after World War I ended, but reimplemented it during World War II. Congress decided to make daylight saving time permanent for two years from 1973 to 1975, extending the hours of daily sunlight to conserve energy during the oil embargo crisis. However, the law was repealed in 1974 for being unpopular and ineffective.

In 1966, Congress passed the Uniform Time Act, standardizing the length of daylight saving time. The dates we use to observe daylight saving time today – starting on the second Sunday of March and ending on the first Sunday of November – were established in 2005 when Congress amended the Act.

According to the Department of Transportation, daylight saving time saves energy, prevents traffic injuries and reduces crime.

Benjamin Franklin is often credited with first proposing daylight saving in his 1784 essay, “An Economical Project.” The idea wasn’t seriously considered, however, until more than a century later when William Willetts, a British builder, fiercely advocated for it. 

The current daylight saving time format was proposed in New Zealand by entomologist George Hudson. In 1895, he recommended a two-hour time change because he wanted to have more daylight after work to go hunting for bugs in the summer.

Not all states and U.S. territories participate in daylight saving time. 

Hawaii and Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Nation) do not observe daylight saving time, and neither do the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

As we inch closer to the impending time change, the sun will start setting just after 6:30 p.m. After the time change in East Tennessee, the sun will begin setting soon after 5:30 p.m. By late November and early December, sunset will be earlier.

This is also an excellent time to check and replace the batteries in your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. It’s a small step that can make a big difference in your safety.

No need to wait till the midnight hour to prepare for the time change that clocks in early Sunday, when 2 a.m. becomes 1 a.m. Before bed beckons Saturday night, rewind the clock on the microwave, oven, car, or any other device not yet clever enough to make the leap on its own. 

Daylight saving time is a timeless tradition that helps us make the most of daylight throughout the year. So, on Sunday, Nov.  3, remember to set your clocks back, enjoy the extra hour, and embrace the coziness of autumn as we transition into the Standard Time zone.