TIME SYSTEMS

SATELLITE GEODESY
• ATOMIC TIME
• DYNAMICAL TIME
• SIDEREAL AND UNIVERSAL TIME

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• Atomic time and Dynamical time are presently used in
many geodetic observation techniques.
• Atomic time is the time derived from atomic clocks.
• Dynamical time is the independent variable in the theory
of relativity.

SATELLITE GEODESY
• Due to the movement of the Earth around the galactic
mass center the atomic time differs periodically from the
dynamic time.
• Before atomic time was available, civilian time systems
were based on the Earth’s rotation and were called
Universal (UT1) or Sidereal time (GMST, GAST).

SATELLITE GEODESY
ATOMIC TIME

•Temps Atomique International (TAI)

•Universal Coordinated Time (UTC)
•GPS Time

SATELLITE GEODESY
TAI
• Temps Atomique International (TAI)
– Based on atomic clocks operated by various national agencies
and kept by the International Earth Rotation Service (IERS)
– A uniform time scale coinciding with Universal Time (UT) at
midnight January 1, 1958.
– Has an interval unit of one SI second.
– SI day = 86400 SI seconds
– Julian Century = 36525 SI days.

SATELLITE GEODESY
JULIAN DATE (RECALL)

• Number of elapsed days since the beginning of a cycle of

7,980 years invented by Joseph Scaliger.
• Start = January 1, 4713 B.C. (noon)
• The Julian Date of the standard epoch of UT is called
J2000.0. It is defined as the Julian Date at 1 January 2000,
12:00 GMT.
• Hence, J2000.0=JD2451545.0
SATELLITE GEODESY
 TAI is a continuous time scale, it does not
maintain synchronization with the solar day (UT).
Since the rotation rate of the Earth is slowing down
the TAI will get more and more ahead to UT. This
problem is solved by the definition of the Universal
Coordinated Time (UTC)
SATELLITE GEODESY
UTC

• UTC runs at the same rate as TAI but is

incremented periodically by leap seconds.
–The introduction of Leap Seconds makes sure
that the difference between UTC and UT (more
precisely: UTC and UT1) is not larger than 0.9
seconds.

SATELLITE GEODESY
GPS TIME

• GPS Time (GPST)

–Runs at the rate of the atomic clock of the GPS Master
Control station in Colorado Springs.
–GPST and UTC coincided at 0h January 6, 1980.
–Since GPST is not incremented, there is a 19 seconds
offset between TAI and GPST.
–GPST = 19s + TAI
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DYNAMICAL TIME

•The independent variable in the equations

of motion of bodies under gravitational
forces according to the theory of General
Relativity

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SIDEREAL AND UNIVERSAL TIME

• Sidereal = Stars
–Apparent Sidereal Time (True vernal equinox)
–Mean Sidereal Time (Mean vernal equinox)
• Universal Time = Mean Solar Time (from mean
sun)
• Equation of time = True - Mean
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RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SIDEREAL
AND UNIVERSAL TIME.

 With TU being the Julian date since J2000.0 in Julian centuries.

SATELLITE GEODESY