International Meridian Conference

The International Meridian Conference in Washington, D.C. officially adopted Greenwich as the prime meridian (0° longitude) on October 22, 1884, standardizing global timekeeping. Representatives from 25 nations voted to establish the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England as the reference point for measuring longitude worldwide and established the foundation for international time zones. The conference helped resolve the previous chaos of multiple local time systems, which had increasingly hampered international commerce, navigation, and communication in an era of expanding global trade and telegraphy.