When it comes to managing timestamps in Snowflake, understanding time zones is crucial. Snowflake stores time zone information by adding the offset at the end of each timestamp, providing a clear indication of the time zone associated with the data.
By default, Snowflake uses the host server’s time zone, which is typically set to Pacific Daylight Time (PDT), for generating the output of current_timestamp().
Converting Time Zones in Snowflake
To work with timestamps in different time zones within Snowflake, you can use the convert_timezone function. This function allows you to convert timestamps from one time zone to another effortlessly. Here’s how it works:
In this example, we have three columns:
pdt_time_zone: This column displays the current timestamp in the default Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) zone.utc_time_zone: Here, we convert the timestamp to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), a common reference point for global timekeeping.europe_paris_time_zone: This column converts the timestamp to the ‘Europe/Paris’ time zone, demonstrating how easy it is to adapt timestamps to different regions.
SELECT
current_timestamp() AS pdt_time_zone,
convert_timezone(‘UTC’, current_timestamp()) AS utc_time_zone,
convert_timezone(‘Europe/Paris’, current_timestamp()) AS europe_paris_time_zone;
In this example, we have three columns:
pdt_time_zone: This column displays the current timestamp in the default Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) zone.utc_time_zone: Here, we convert the timestamp to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), a common reference point for global timekeeping.europe_paris_time_zone: This column converts the timestamp to the ‘Europe/Paris’ time zone, demonstrating how easy it is to adapt timestamps to different regions.
It’s important to note that Snowflake supports the IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority) time zone database, providing comprehensive coverage of time zones worldwide. This ensures accuracy and consistency when working with timestamps from various geographic locations.
By utilizing the convert_timezone function and understanding how Snowflake handles time zones, you can seamlessly manage timestamp data in different regions and ensure your analyses and reports are both accurate and meaningful.