The Ordnance Survey, the British organisation that has been producing maps since 1791, explains that PNT has three core elements: Known as Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT), this precision-timing system allows communications systems to measure and keep accurate timing. The inner workings of a US atomic clock that keeps time with record-breaking accuracy Similar atomic clocks would be placed on the moon to get an accurate time reading.

An atomic clock uses the vibrations of atoms to achieve extreme precision in keeping track of time. UTC is determined by more than 400 atomic clocks that are maintained in national “time laboratories” in about 30 countries around the world. Known as “gravitational time dilation”, the passage of time is impacted by gravity.Īlthough small, these time discrepancies can cause issues with syncing satellites and space stations in lunar orbit.Īn unnamed OSTP official told Reuters: “Imagine if the world wasn’t syncing their clocks to the same time – how disruptive that might be and how challenging everyday things become.” How would we tell time on the moon?Įarth uses UTC or Coordinated Universal Time to sync time zones around the world. This is not science fiction, even though it is a main feature of Hollywood blockbusters such as Interstellar. In layman’s terms, we need a reliable “lunar time” earth-syncing system because lower gravity on the moon causes time to move slightly faster there than on Earth – by just 58.7 microseconds (there are 1 million microseconds in a single second) faster within every 24 Earth hours. Why does the moon need its own time zone? Scalability to space environments beyond the Earth-moon system (meaning other space stations beyond the moon would be able to use CLT as well).ĭon’t expect your favourite time zone and calendar apps to have CLT as an option yet NASA has until the end of 2026 to establish CLT.Resilience to loss of contact with Earth (meaning CLT can operate independently of Earth) and.Accuracy sufficient to support precision navigation and science.Traceability to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC – a compromise for both English and French speakers).The memo outlined the following features for the new CLT: Keep reading list of 4 items list 1 of 4 Russia’s Angara A5 rocket blasts off into space after two aborted launches list 2 of 4 Photos: Mexico, US, Canada mesmerised by rare total solar eclipse list 3 of 4 Moment total solar eclipse occurs in North America list 4 of 4 Millions across North America await total solar eclipse end of list

What time zone in wisconsin