What are some best practices for handling time zone conversions in PHP applications to avoid discrepancies like missing hours?

When handling time zone conversions in PHP applications, it is important to always work with DateTime objects and specify the time zone explicitly. This helps avoid discrepancies like missing hours due to daylight saving time changes. By consistently using DateTime objects and setting the time zone correctly, you can ensure accurate time calculations across different time zones.

// Set the default time zone to UTC
date_default_timezone_set('UTC');

// Create a DateTime object with the current time in a specific time zone
$dateTime = new DateTime('now', new DateTimeZone('America/New_York'));

// Convert the DateTime object to another time zone
$dateTime->setTimezone(new DateTimeZone('Europe/London'));

// Format and output the converted time
echo $dateTime->format('Y-m-d H:i:s');