20260101T120000Z

20260101T120000Z is a compact timestamp representation that encodes the date and time as 2026-01-01 at 12:00:00 UTC. In ISO 8601 shorthand, it uses a basic format YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS with a trailing Z to indicate Zulu time (UTC). The 'T' serves as a delimiter between date and time, and the final 'Z' designates the universal time zone.

Use: This form is common in computer systems, logs, filenames, and data interchange where compact, unambiguous timestamps are needed. It may appear in version control markers, backup scripts, APIs, or schedule entries. It is compatible with software libraries that parse ISO 8601 or RFC 3339 timestamps; however some systems avoid the compact form in favor of human-readable forms with separators.

Parsing and interpretation: The value represents January 1, 2026, at 12:00:00 UTC. If the trailing Z is omitted or replaced by an offset, the time zone information changes and the instant may represent a different moment. The format assumes a proleptic Gregorian calendar and does not encode calendar exceptions beyond standard ISO 8601 rules.

See also: ISO 8601, UTC, Zulu time, RFC 3339, timestamp.