What time is it? It's one of the most commonly asked questions during our everyday life. A couple of minutes can be the difference between being on time for work, and being late. It can be the difference between getting to the bank when they are open or missing it when they close. And a couple of minutes can be the difference between winning the gold medal in the Marathon and finishing back in the pack.
Those are just a few of the examples of why keeping accurate time is important. And, as a time measurement device, the International Atomic Time is the standard by which time is measured around the world.
The first Atomic Clock was established in 1955 by the National Physical Laboratory in the United Kingdom. Over the course of time various organizations expanded on the idea of atomic time and made improvements. Other organizations such as the Bureau International de l'heure, the United States Naval Observatory and the International Bureau of Weights and Measures have begun operation to keep track of time.
International Atomic Time is calculated from a weighted average from atomic clocks in over 50 laboratories worldwide. International Atomic Time is the basis for Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), which is how all time in the world is based. To synchronize the time worldwide, all participating laboratories broadcast a frequency which contains time codes which become the UTC.
By utilizing the series of worldwide laboratories, the world is able to keep accurate time by way of highly accurate atomic clocks. For more information on atomic clocks and worldwide measurement, we have collected several resources: