How to convert local time string to UTC?

Question

How do I convert a datetime string in local time to a string in UTC time?

I\'m sure I\'ve done this before, but can\'t find it and SO will hopefull

Answer 1

Thanks @rofly, the full conversion from string to string is as follows:

time.strftime("%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S", 
              time.gmtime(time.mktime(time.strptime("2008-09-17 14:04:00", 
                                                    "%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S"))))

My summary of the time/calendar functions:

time.strptime
string --> tuple (no timezone applied, so matches string)

time.mktime
local time tuple --> seconds since epoch (always local time)

time.gmtime
seconds since epoch --> tuple in UTC

and

calendar.timegm
tuple in UTC --> seconds since epoch

time.localtime
seconds since epoch --> tuple in local timezone