[LEAPSECS] LEAPSECS Digest, Vol 91, Issue 4 prime meridian and legalities

[Matsakis, Demetrios]

Rob,

I too am sorry I missed the AAS session.  You may have heard the story about my being "stranded in paradise".   I had reservations to return from the Caribbean on the Friday before the Sunday meeting.  Unfortunately that particular Friday was one of the many days snow paralyzed the North American East coast last winter.  The next Jet Blue flight I could catch was four days later.

Worse, I won't be able to help you much with your question.   The prime meridian is a historical construct, now noticeably offset from the stripe tourists like to straddle in Greenwich.   I don't see how it is related to time anymore.     As for legal issues, these are beyond my expertise and authority.   But we all know legal time is individually defined by the sovereign states, most of which are represented in the ITU.  Their representatives have been informed of the proposal.   In fact, I'm told it has gathered far more attention than the typical ITU resolutions.  I've even head it described as sexy.   Although many people have noted that some technical scientific documentation would have to be rephrased,  I'm personally unaware of any nation claiming an insurmountable adverse legal impact.  It would seem to me that the multiyear implementation delay would allow ample time for any nation to adjust is laws.

Demetrios

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Today's Topics:

   1. Re: Real April Fools' Joke: GMT Abolished (Rob Seaman)


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Message: 1
Date: Mon, 7 Apr 2014 05:57:20 -0700
From: Rob Seaman <seaman at noao.edu>
Subject: Re: [LEAPSECS] Real April Fools' Joke: GMT Abolished
To: "Matsakis, Demetrios" <demetrios.matsakis at usno.navy.mil>
Cc: Leap Second Discussion List <leapsecs at leapsecond.com>
Message-ID: <A05CCBC6-C4FF-487C-8EBE-736A101E95B1 at noao.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

Hi Demetrios,

Sorry you couldn't make it to our session at the DC AAS meeting in January.  We were very glad to see so many others from USNO.

On Apr 3, 2014, at 11:00 AM, Matsakis, Demetrios <demetrios.matsakis at usno.navy.mil> wrote:


> http://www.timeanddate.com/news/time/paris-meridian-gmt-obsolete.html


The links to the previous years' efforts are pretty good, too.  (Though I would have thought the essence of an April Fool's joke was not to announce it as a joke ;-)

Regarding the prime meridian, can you comment on how a similar issue would be avoided should leap seconds cease?  Presumably USNO, the ITU-R, or somebody has investigated the technical and legal implications? *

It is generally not considered to be a good thing when a public policy proposal resembles a practical joke.  On the other hand, as one can see, even in jokes there is an assumed equivalence between civil timekeeping and mean solar time.  GMT and the concept of the prime meridian have been jointly tied together since the 19th century.  UTC is the modern realization of GMT.  If UTC is redefined, then what?

Rob
--

* see http://www.cacr.caltech.edu/futureofutc/2011/preprints/04_AAS_11-662_Seago.pdf

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End of LEAPSECS Digest, Vol 91, Issue 4
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