INTERNATIONAL EARTH ROTATION AND REFERENCE SYSTEMS SERVICE (IERS)

SERVICE INTERNATIONAL DE LA ROTATION TERRESTRE ET DES SYSTEMES DE REFERENCE

SERVICE DE LA ROTATION TERRESTRE
OBSERVATOIRE DE PARIS
61, Av. de l'Observatoire 75014 PARIS (France)
Tel. : 33 (0) 1 40 51 22 26
FAX : 33 (0) 1 40 51 22 91
e-mail : (E-Mail Removed)
http://hpiers.obspm.fr/eop-pc

Paris, 4 July 2008

Bulletin C 36

To authorities responsible
for the measurement and
distribution of time


UTC TIME STEP
on the 1st of January 2009


A positive leap second will be introduced at the end of December 2008.
The sequence of dates of the UTC second markers will be:

2008 December 31, 23h 59m 59s
2008 December 31, 23h 59m 60s
2009 January 1, 0h 0m 0s

The difference between UTC and the International Atomic Time TAI is:

from 2006 January 1, 0h UTC, to 2009 January 1 0h UTC : UTC-TAI = - 33s
from 2009 January 1, 0h UTC, until further notice : UTC-TAI = - 34s

Leap seconds can be introduced in UTC at the end of the months of December
or June, depending on the evolution of UT1-TAI. Bulletin C is mailed every
six months, either to announce a time step in UTC or to confirm that there
will be no time step at the next possible date.



Daniel GAMBIS
Head
Earth Orientation Center of IERS
Observatoire de Paris, France

On Jul 4, 6:06*am, Sam Wormley <sworml...@mchsi.com> wrote:

> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *To authorities responsible
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * for the measurement and
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * distribution of time
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * UTC TIME STEP
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *on the 1st of January 2009
>
> * A positive leap second will be introduced at the end of December 2008..

This announcement has all the substance of a flat Earth declaration
and it is quite an amazing statement once the actual core principles
for astronomical timekeeping become known for all the wrong reasons.

This is the symptom of a modern tragedy where the reasoning behind
the modern addition of a leap second conflicts with the ancient
reasoning behind the addition of 86 400 leap seconds every 4th year
(Feb 29th).I do not blame the unfortunate John Flamsteed for
introducing this 'sidereal time' desolation into timekeeping astronomy
nor do I particularly fault people for reasoning that the Earth
rotates through 360 degrees in 23 hours 56 minutes 04 seconds however
I have to present an alternative 'responsible authority' point of view
where people can comfortably acknowledge how clocks are kept in synch
with the axial cycle as 24 hours/380 degrees or 15 degrees per hour.

Amercans are reminded today that the foundations of their goverment
are based on the frontier spirit,the idea that a new country with new
possibilities requires room to breathe and while acknowledging the
heritage derived from Europe,it sets out on its own terms the
background for its people -

"Nor have we been wanting in attention to our British brethren. We
have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to
extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of
the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have
appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured
them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations,
which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence.
They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity.
We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our
separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in
war, in peace friends. "

http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyame.../doi/text.html

No less the astronomical spirit which cannot be contained within the
confines of a celestial sphere cistern adorned with novelistic
junk,people already have a sense that there is something better and
must leave the proponents of novelistic junk behind and this 'leap
second' nonsense certainly qualifies as junk.The empirical ideology
tries to make the Earth less special ,this ill-conceived attempt to
find life outside the Earth in order to put it in context with the
'scientific method' and its anti-faith views should be irritating to
people who genuinely want to appreciate terrestrial and astronomical
phenomena and how both mesh to make existence possible.

I find it amazing that people have eventually found a way past the
obstacles placed in their way by others who have no love of astronomy
or who restrict it simply to a magnification exercise,they no longer
have time to listen to the announcement of 'leap second' as something
worthwhile or authoritative even if you,Sam,do not know it.












.

In sci.astro.amateur message <Pfpbk.237857$yE1.212885@attbi_s21>, Fri, 4
Jul 2008 13:06:55, Sam Wormley <(E-Mail Removed)> quoted:
>
> UTC TIME STEP
> on the 1st of January 2009
>
>
> A positive leap second will be introduced at the end of December 2008.
> The sequence of dates of the UTC second markers will be:
>
> 2008 December 31, 23h 59m 59s
> 2008 December 31, 23h 59m 60s
> 2009 January 1, 0h 0m 0s


That is clearly in error, since the tome step occurs, as is shown, on
2008 December 31st. The year 2009 will be delayed but not otherwise
affected.

--
(c) John Stockton, nr London, UK. ?@merlyn.demon.co.uk Turnpike v6.05.
Web <URL:http://www.merlyn.demon.co.uk/> - w. FAQish topics, links, acronyms
PAS EXE etc : <URL:http://www.merlyn.demon.co.uk/programs/> - see 00index.htm
Dates - miscdate.htm moredate.htm js-dates.htm pas-time.htm critdate.htm etc.

On Jul 4, 9:06*am, Sam Wormley <sworml...@mchsi.com> wrote:
> * * * INTERNATIONAL EARTH ROTATION AND REFERENCE SYSTEMS SERVICE (IERS)
>
> SERVICE INTERNATIONAL DE LA ROTATION TERRESTRE ET DES SYSTEMES DE REFERENCE
>
> SERVICE DE LA ROTATION TERRESTRE
> OBSERVATOIRE DE PARIS
> 61, Av. de l'Observatoire 75014 PARIS (France)
> Tel. * * *: 33 (0) 1 40 51 22 26
> FAX * * * : 33 (0) 1 40 51 22 91
> e-mail * *: services.i...@obspm.frhttp://hpiers.obspm.fr/eop-pc
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Paris, 4 July 2008
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Bulletin C 36
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *To authorities responsible
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * for the measurement and
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * distribution of time
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * UTC TIME STEP
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *on the 1st of January 2009
>
> * A positive leap second will be introduced at the end of December 2008..
> * The sequence of dates of the UTC second markers will be: * * * * * * *
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * *2008 December 31, * * 23h 59m 59s
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * *2008 December 31, * * 23h 59m 60s
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * *2009 January * 1, * * *0h *0m *0s
>
> * The difference between UTC and the International Atomic Time TAI is:
>
> * *from 2006 January 1, 0h UTC, to 2009 January 1 *0h UTC *: UTC-TAI = - 33s
> * *from 2009 January 1, 0h UTC, until further notice * * * : UTC-TAI = - 34s
>
> * Leap seconds can be introduced in UTC at the end of the months of December
> * or June, depending on the evolution of UT1-TAI. Bulletin C is mailed every
> * six months, either to announce a time step in UTC or to confirm that there
> * will be no time step at the next possible date.
>
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Daniel GAMBIS
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Head * * * * * *
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *Earth Orientation Center of IERS
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Observatoire de Paris, France

Sam... I was thinking...

This leap second might present the opportunity to test the software
installed in various GPSRs.

The time display of a GPSR with lock on several satellites should show
the correct time after the leap second and after a 2009 navigation
message is downloaded.

But the navigation message also contains a few bytes giving a detailed
WARNING of an upcoming leap second. So the experiment would be to let
your GPSR get a complete navigation message in late December, then on
New Year's Eve power up the GPSR in an area with no satellite
reception, and see if the time display is programmed to handle the
23:59:60 event correctly.

Of course, pre-or post- New Year's libations could seriously interfere
with observations and data logging, depending on your time zone...

A photo of a 23:59:60 display would be neat...You'd have a whole
second to get it...

Sam Wormley <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> A positive leap second will be introduced at the end of December 2008.
> The sequence of dates of the UTC second markers will be:
>
> 2008 December 31, 23h 59m 59s
> 2008 December 31, 23h 59m 60s
> 2009 January 1, 0h 0m 0s
>

So the system remains in force
untill there has been a positive decission
to scrap it,

Jan

On Jul 8, 5:50*am, "jmorr...@idirect.com" <jmorr...@idirect.com>
wrote:
> On Jul 4, 9:06*am, Sam Wormley <sworml...@mchsi.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > * * * INTERNATIONAL EARTH ROTATION AND REFERENCE SYSTEMS SERVICE (IERS)
>
> > SERVICE INTERNATIONAL DE LA ROTATION TERRESTRE ET DES SYSTEMES DE REFERENCE
>
> > SERVICE DE LA ROTATION TERRESTRE
> > OBSERVATOIRE DE PARIS
> > 61, Av. de l'Observatoire 75014 PARIS (France)
> > Tel. * * *: 33 (0) 1 40 51 22 26
> > FAX * * * : 33 (0) 1 40 51 22 91
> > e-mail * *: services.i...@obspm.frhttp://hpiers.obspm.fr/eop-pc
>
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * *Paris, 4 July 2008
>
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * *Bulletin C 36
>
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * *To authorities responsible
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * for the measurement and
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * distribution of time
>
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *UTC TIME STEP
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *on the 1st of January 2009
>
> > * A positive leap second will be introduced at the end of December 2008.
> > * The sequence of dates of the UTC second markers will be: * * * * * * *
>
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * *2008 December 31, * * 23h 59m 59s
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * *2008 December 31, * * 23h 59m 60s
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * *2009 January *1, * * *0h *0m *0s
>
> > * The difference between UTC and the International Atomic Time TAI is:
>
> > * *from 2006 January 1, 0h UTC, to 2009 January 1 *0h UTC *: UTC-TAI = - 33s
> > * *from 2009 January 1, 0h UTC, until further notice * * * : UTC-TAI = - 34s
>
> > * Leap seconds can be introduced in UTC at the end of the months of December
> > * or June, depending on the evolution of UT1-TAI. Bulletin C is mailed every
> > * six months, either to announce a time step in UTC or to confirm that there
> > * will be no time step at the next possible date.
>
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * *Daniel GAMBIS
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * *Head * * * * * *
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * *Earth Orientation Center of IERS
> > * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * Observatoire de Paris, France
>
> Sam... I was thinking...
>
> This leap second might present the opportunity to test the software
> installed in various GPSRs.
>
> The time display of a GPSR with lock on several satellites should show
> the correct time after the leap second and after a 2009 navigation
> message is downloaded.
>
> But the navigation message also contains a few bytes giving a detailed
> WARNING of an upcoming leap second. *So the experiment would be to let
> your GPSR get a complete navigation message in late December, then on
> New Year's Eve power up the GPSR in an area with no satellite
> reception, and see if the time display is programmed to handle the
> 23:59:60 event correctly.
>
> Of course, pre-or post- New Year's libations could seriously interfere
> with observations and data logging, depending on your time zone...
>
> A photo of a 23:59:60 display would be neat...You'd have a whole
> second to get it...- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

How an entire group of people managed to convince themselves of the
need for a 'leap second' even though our ancestors have been adding 86
400 of them every 4th year plus further refinements made in the middle
ages most certainly qualifies as some sort of mass blindsidedness or
something like that.

It is not just that,with no allowances made for variations in the
orbital motion of the Earth (everything is locked into axial/celestial
sphere coordinates and subsequently a calendrical framework) the Earth
is reduced a clockwork toy,a way to test software or some other
vacuous self-congratulatory pursuit.

Why this not does not qualify as an institutional crisis I do not
know,the dangerous part is that nobody sees it as a disintegration of
human reasoning based on the destruction of stable core principles
such as the creation of the 24 hour day from natural noon cycle and
the seperate calendar system based on equable 24 hour days.The
overlaying of the calendar system on structural heliocentric reasoning
(sidereal time/false retrograde resolution) is an incredible act of
vandalism whether anyone cares to acknowledge it or not,far surpassing
any current news event in terms of its destructive effects,that is not
hyperbole,that is an actual observation -

http://www.maniacworld.com/pitiful-a...game-show.html

Despite the title of the video as 'Pitiful',it is actually a true
reflection of the intellectual standard that exists,52 % answered that
the Sun orbits the Earth while 100% of people here thinks the Earth
rotates through 360 degrees in 23 hours 56 minutes 04 seconds (hence
the 'leap second').

I believe the worst part is over,the inability to see that mistakes
were made centuries ago is more damaging than knowing that there are
more productive and correct core principles to compare them with.This
generation gets to correct these mistakes.

On Jul 8, 12:50*am, "jmorr...@idirect.com" <jmorr...@idirect.com>
wrote:
> Sam... I was thinking...
>
> This leap second might present the opportunity to test the software
> installed in various GPSRs.
>
> The time display of a GPSR with lock on several satellites should show
> the correct time after the leap second and after a 2009 navigation
> message is downloaded.
>
> But the navigation message also contains a few bytes giving a detailed
> WARNING of an upcoming leap second. *So the experiment would be to let
> your GPSR get a complete navigation message in late December, then on
> New Year's Eve power up the GPSR in an area with no satellite
> reception, and see if the time display is programmed to handle the
> 23:59:60 event correctly.
>
> Of course, pre-or post- New Year's libations could seriously interfere
> with observations and data logging, depending on your time zone...
>
> A photo of a 23:59:60 display would be neat...You'd have a whole
> second to get it...

You may or may not see it in the display depending on the firmware.
Could try making a video of it to check. But the leap second should be
in the NMEA $GPZDA messages output by the receiver. Here are the
messages from a u-blox GPS receiver on the occasion of the last leap
second:
$GPZDA,235955.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6D
$GPZDA,235956.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6E
$GPZDA,235957.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6F
$GPZDA,235958.00,31,12,2005,00,00*60
$GPZDA,235959.00,31,12,2005,00,00*61
$GPZDA,235960.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6B
$GPZDA,000000.00,01,01,2006,00,00*62
$GPZDA,000001.00,01,01,2006,00,00*63
$GPZDA,000002.00,01,01,2006,00,00*60
$GPZDA,000003.00,01,01,2006,00,00*61
$GPZDA,000004.00,01,01,2006,00,00*66
$GPZDA,000005.00,01,01,2006,00,00*67
-- Richard Langley

Prof. Richard B. Langley wrote:
> On Jul 8, 12:50 am, "jmorr...@idirect.com" <jmorr...@idirect.com>
> wrote:
>> Sam... I was thinking...
>>
>> This leap second might present the opportunity to test the software
>> installed in various GPSRs.
>>
>> The time display of a GPSR with lock on several satellites should show
>> the correct time after the leap second and after a 2009 navigation
>> message is downloaded.
>>
>> But the navigation message also contains a few bytes giving a detailed
>> WARNING of an upcoming leap second. So the experiment would be to let
>> your GPSR get a complete navigation message in late December, then on
>> New Year's Eve power up the GPSR in an area with no satellite
>> reception, and see if the time display is programmed to handle the
>> 23:59:60 event correctly.
>>
>> Of course, pre-or post- New Year's libations could seriously interfere
>> with observations and data logging, depending on your time zone...
>>
>> A photo of a 23:59:60 display would be neat...You'd have a whole
>> second to get it...
>
> You may or may not see it in the display depending on the firmware.
> Could try making a video of it to check. But the leap second should be
> in the NMEA $GPZDA messages output by the receiver. Here are the
> messages from a u-blox GPS receiver on the occasion of the last leap
> second:
> $GPZDA,235955.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6D
> $GPZDA,235956.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6E
> $GPZDA,235957.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6F
> $GPZDA,235958.00,31,12,2005,00,00*60
> $GPZDA,235959.00,31,12,2005,00,00*61
> $GPZDA,235960.00,31,12,2005,00,00*6B
> $GPZDA,000000.00,01,01,2006,00,00*62
> $GPZDA,000001.00,01,01,2006,00,00*63
> $GPZDA,000002.00,01,01,2006,00,00*60
> $GPZDA,000003.00,01,01,2006,00,00*61
> $GPZDA,000004.00,01,01,2006,00,00*66
> $GPZDA,000005.00,01,01,2006,00,00*67
> -- Richard Langley


Thanks Richard--

Yes--I should record the results this year... As I remember it took
the TerraSync software on a couple of Trimble receivers the better
part of a minute to get the time display correct... but memories are
fallible and there's no substitute for documentation.

-Sam

oriel36 <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

> How an entire group of people managed to convince themselves of the
> need for a 'leap second' even though our ancestors have been adding 86
> 400 of them every 4th year plus further refinements made in the middle
> ages most certainly qualifies as some sort of mass blindsidedness or
> something like that.

Dear house troll,
there is no need for a leap second,
and nobody ever said there was.
It is merely a convenient convention.

Conventions can't be wrong, only more or less convenient,
depending on what you use them for,

Jan

I recorded the last leap second on WWV, and it sounded like this:

....
tick (23:59:56)
tick (23:59:57)
tick (23:59:58)
(silent) (23:59:59)
(silent) (23:59:60)
BEEP (00:00:00)
tick (00:00:01)
tick (00:00:02)
tick (00:00:03)
....

Maybe I'll get a better recording this time. The radio was willing
(Harris RF590), but the ionosphere was not... :-(

Laura Halliday VE7LDH "Non sequitur. Your ACKS are
Grid: CN89mg uncoordinated."
ICBM: 49 16.05 N 122 56.92 W - Nomad the Network Engineer