Ambiguous Clocks

clock.jpg

This clock has identical hour and minute hands. Despite that fact, you can tell that it is 3:00 and not 12:15 because if it were 12:15, the hour hand would be one quarter of the way between twelve and one.

Similarly, if one of the hands were on the six and one were half way between the six and the seven, you’d know that it was 6:30 and not 6:33.

The question I have for you is, can you always tell what time it is by looking at the relative positions of the hands or are there configurations that could be two different valid times?

If so, why? If not, name a clock configuration that could represent two different valid times.

Notes: Assume the hands move continuously but you only have a snapshot of the clock so you can’t watch the hands move. Also, ignore AM and PM.

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