| | | | |
|
The time according to atoms
4/26/12
One second in 30 million years!
The accuracy and stability of atomic clocks exceed all other oscillation systems. The typical stability of an atomic clock is 10-15 sec per sec. Hence, in the space of a second, we expect a maximum time fluctuation of a millionth of a billionth of a second. In the space of one day, this means that there will be a maximum fluctuation of 10-10 sec, i.e. a tenth of a billionth of a second (a tenth of a nanosecond). In other words, you would have to wait 30 million years to observe two clocks drifting by one second... “which would equal less than 3 minutes since the beginning of the earth more than 4 billion years ago”, Thierry Bastin tells us enthusiastically. And these limits are continuously getting shorter: we’re now at 10-18 sec per sec!
|
|
| | | | |
eNrFmG1v2jAQx9/zKVDe5wEKK5oC1craDanVGC3atDeVSQ4wM3Z6toHu088hrKVTIjaD1Zd+yN3F9/fPZ8cXmyWrrwAlFbzrNYLIqwNPREr5rOuN76/9jnfRq8ULsiJ708y8oNn06gkjUna9fDSYAOEy+H578xHM94Ber1aPxWQBiXo1TyvKgs9Ezm9Jls+pxytB0/oS1FykXS/Tattbj6VCE0VvLfCnzEgCcbjr2R9dPLT2++MwN/YPVrUEvCF8VmoUuJXNRCMCV32iYCbwqdR08tCOzhpW5qkcgRQaExgSNR+iWNEU0lIvU8IkWDmZrtM7wBUDlTspNR4mS2llmyzIZgSPg/KYP5jRvtooP/Ib5432edR51446rcjKFe6tVHkeljJMHlpnjU4UAg+LZjuKmi+t50E1B1/RJfgkSQTmW8NXwidKWK4DlUOBijBHKaSy/1qIjvwgPB6USkplxshTsJCZ7VIRJGYY0ODC3Y/kf3CPBmDMrNlf9rlmLPzPqMc7vDiKOKdXX2iuKihzPbJdiL7gCjbVGbUDo9rstEhBns7sL8HLD4WhnjCa2PLPIEqDVOPRoBJ/b4iOSyJhjO7Y8Y3yVKzl6Zm0rwFH0WdbrFbUCe1Ws2292X4YqVWcW1caRQbhJWopgcljCDTgU3Ese4yAy009y/eNpLutuERCGFTUXL4ltYxm/5SIznaFux1XDJQa/XR1b6umrxrw6W7bLDVN0+4u1XZAd3FKGOUeCjsjqLpnR7DhUG3e6FheJ7AcO3OlMvk+DNfrdYAwZbAxFygZaEZhBubKdKrD5OKIlTFsfkmnu2uFk8qiqLQKOjsKfVIcuHbptd2/h2qQY+vq3fe7+r3Uh0INR+SkQL0zIA+uTs/4l6LaWdjDVxRy52ZbABNl1Oiq1NKTCobanyomq/waDSa+TKe04r2nUpVxWLw19WpxmL8z9Wq/Aa/IME4=
9QdhLDEmHMA1sm5M