[LEAPSECS] Schedule for success

[Steve Allen]

On Tue 2008-12-30T19:12:19 -0700, M. Warner Losh hath writ:

> But the MET link from this page

> (http://science.nasa.gov/realtime/rocket_sci/clocks/time-met.html)

> says:

>

> "There are MET clocks on board; the other on-board clock is the GMT

> clock."

>

> So it appears the confusion might be pervasive...


It gets worse.  JPL would have us believe that UTC (a coordinate time
scale which is defined only on the surface of the earth and which gets
really wobbly with respect to proper time even out as close as GEO
orbit) can be propagated linearly around the solar system such that it
is defined at Jupiter and Saturn

http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/basics/bsf2-3.html

This is enough to send a special relativist running away screaming,
let alone a general relativist.

But this sort of discussion is not aimed in the direction of helping
make the choice of whether or not the broadcast time scale keeps
leaping, nor whether the broadcast time scale keeps the name UTC if it
stops leaping.

Yes, there's a lot of misinformation out there -- more than enough to
call into question whether and how there can actually be anything like
international agreement on what time it is.  But tearing down is not
useful, the overall state of knowledge can and does get better, and
as a technological society we do *have to agree* on what time it is.

--
Steve Allen                 <sla at ucolick.org>                WGS-84 (GPS)
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