How to convert a String date to a Date

Question

How can I convert this string:

Tue Jan 24 14:59:20 BRT 2017.

Into a date that includes day month year and time and timezone, using Excel functions only.

I have several cells with dates following this format. I have to compute the difference between some of these dates in minutes. I believe that the first step is converting the date to a String to a real date information. Then, I will be able to: order the dates and compute the time between consecutive dates.

Answer 1

Use this formula:

=--(SUBSTITUTE(MID(A1,5,LEN(A1)),"BRT",""))

Then format it to the format you want.

It will now work in math equations.