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From: mojo@kepler.UUCP (Morris Jones)
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: Re: Leap seconds
Message-ID: <157@kepler.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 10-Aug-85 05:26:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: kepler.157
Posted: Sat Aug 10 05:26:32 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 14-Aug-85 00:48:21 EDT
References: <2884@mordor.UUCP> <287@ubvax.UUCP>
Reply-To: mojo@kepler.UUCP (mojo)
Organization: MicroPro Int'l Corp., San Rafael, CA
Lines: 21

In article <287@ubvax.UUCP> scott@ubvax.UUCP (Scott Scheiman) writes:
>Quite a few years back they came only every few years, at midnight
>beginning a new year.  Then a year came when they added a leap second at
>both ends of the year.  This year we had a leap second added
>between June and July (I think).  I don't know why it was added in the
>middle of the year this year, but my guess is that we now have to have
>more than one leap second added per year and adding two on Jan. 1
>(Dec. 31?) would be more disruptive than "smoothing" it out by adding 

I believe they have a stated goal of keeping Coordinated Universal Time
within a second of astronomical time -- hence the scattered addition
of leap seconds.  I know that WWV brodcasts a correction, plus or minus
seven tenths of a second or so, to correct CUT to astronomical.
You count the double clicks before or after the minute mark to get the
correction.

P.S., Scott, I like your frog.  "Time's fun when you're having flies."
-- 
Mojo
... Morris Jones, MicroPro Product Development
{dual,ptsfa,hplabs}!well!micropro!kepler!mojo