Day 2: 12:00 Noon-1:00 P.M. - S2-E5
Revealing mistake: The Fox news video that Palmer watches of the Ambassador's helicopter being shot down is marked 1:18:24 in the lower right hand corner. The episode is supposed to take place between Noon and 1 p.m. This is 41.47 into the episode.
Chosen answer: Nobody knew, not even the writers, until at least halfway through the season when they were writing the end. They wanted to keep all options open.
Nick N.