Julian Date Today
Day numbers by month, 2026 and 2027
| Month | 2026: first day | 2027: first day | 2026: last day | 2027: last day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 26001 | 27001 | 26031 | 27031 |
| February | 26032 | 27032 | 26059 | 27059 |
| March | 26060 | 27060 | 26090 | 27090 |
| April | 26091 | 27091 | 26120 | 27120 |
| May | 26121 | 27121 | 26151 | 27151 |
| June | 26152 | 27152 | 26181 | 27181 |
| July | 26182 | 27182 | 26212 | 27212 |
| August | 26213 | 27213 | 26243 | 27243 |
| September | 26244 | 27244 | 26273 | 27273 |
| October | 26274 | 27274 | 26304 | 27304 |
| November | 26305 | 27305 | 26334 | 27334 |
| December | 26335 | 27335 | 26365 | 27365 |
Two kinds of Julian date
Ordinal (YYDDD). The form printed on military paperwork, supply labels, egg cartons and many food packages is the last two digits of the year followed by the day of the year, padded to three digits. February 1, 2027 is 27032; December 31, 2027 is 27365. A seven-digit version (YYYYDDD, 2027032) avoids confusion between centuries, and some systems use a single year digit (7032), which only works within one decade.
Astronomical. Astronomers count days continuously from noon on January 1, 4713 BC. At noon UTC on January 1, 2027 the Julian day number is 2461407. The count changes at noon, not midnight, so that a night of observing has a single number. Software often uses the Modified Julian Date (the Julian date minus 2,400,000.5), which starts at midnight.
Neither is related to the Julian calendar of ancient Rome except by name. The day count was named, indirectly, after the same Julius Caesar.
Questions and answers
What is a Julian date?
In the military, logistics and food packaging, a "Julian date" is the year plus the day of the year: 27032 or 2027032 means the 32nd day of 2027, February 1. Astronomers use a different Julian date: a running count of days since 4713 BC.
How do I convert a Julian date to a normal date?
Split off the year (the first two or four digits), then count that many days from January 1. Day 060 is March 1 in a common year and February 29 in a leap year. The converter above does it for you.
Is the Julian date the same as the Julian calendar?
No. The Julian calendar is the old calendar introduced by Julius Caesar, now 13 days behind the Gregorian calendar. A Julian date is only a day count.
What is the Julian date for January 1, 2027?
27001 in YYDDD form, 2027001 in YYYYDDD form. The astronomical Julian day number at noon UTC is 2461407.