A team of physicists and engineers from Vector Atomic, a US-based manufacturer of navigation and communication equipment, have developed an advanced atomic clock that is both incredibly accurate and durable. This new clock has the ability to calculate time with a precision of 1,000 times more than most clocks used on ships today.
The need for precise timing in navigation systems is becoming increasingly important as technology continues to advance. Inaccuracies in timing can lead to significant errors in navigation, which can be particularly problematic for military ships. To address this issue, Vector Atomic’s team developed a new atomic clock model that is both sturdy enough for use on a moving ship and highly accurate.
The new atomic clock utilizes vibrating iodine molecules and is compact in size, weighing just 26kg and similar in size to three shoeboxes. This makes it suitable for use on most ships. The clock was tested on the HMNZS Aotearoa in the Pacific and proved to be almost as accurate as when running in a lab setting, maintaining a cumulative time error of around 300 picoseconds (300 trillionths of a second) each day.
Vector Atomic’s team is currently working on further developing this innovative clock with the goal of making it small enough for use in navigation satellites. This advancement in technology has the potential to greatly improve the accuracy and reliability of timekeeping on ships and other applications.