[LEAPSECS] php breaks if UTC has no leap seconds?

[Richard B. Langley]

USNO predicts UT1-UTC. In Bulletin A  
<http://maia.usno.navy.mil/ser7/ser7.dat>, they predict daily values  
for a year in advance but only provide an error estimate up to 40 days  
in advance. Elsewhere <http://maia.usno.navy.mil/ser7/deltat.preds>,  
longer-term predictions are given; supposedly updated annually.

-- Richard Langley

Quoting Warner Losh <imp at bsdimp.com>:


> On 12/09/2010 17:35, Rob Seaman wrote:

>> On Dec 9, 2010, at 3:53 PM, Steve Allen wrote:

>>

>>> This is the first example I've come across where a widely used API  

>>> will break if UTC does not continue to have leap seconds.

>> Has anyone even considered a Y2K style inventory?

>>

>> Absence of evidence is not...oh, what's the point?

> Keep in mind that while a code change would required to fetch DUT1  

> from the internet or other source, the API could continue to  

> function, but with an increased uncertainty as the date is farther  

> into the future.  If this is an important number to know, I'm sure  

> someone will publish a model that tries to approximate dUT1 and  

> gives an uncertainty range that presumably expands the further into  

> the future we go.

>

> You're correct about the question: How many of these interfaces are  

> there, and what is the implication for increasing the error in the  

> present calculation from 1s?  For php, I doubt anybody would care  

> for the cases likely to be in error...  For other things, likely  

> they care more.

>

> Warner

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===============================================================================
  Richard B. Langley                            E-mail: lang at unb.ca
  Geodetic Research Laboratory                  Web: http://www.unb.ca/GGE/
  Dept. of Geodesy and Geomatics Engineering    Phone:    +1 506 453-5142
  University of New Brunswick                   Fax:      +1 506 453-4943
  Fredericton, N.B., Canada  E3B 5A3
      Fredericton?  Where's that?  See: http://www.city.fredericton.nb.ca/
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