3 ms·
Even the GPS satellites have to take into special relativity - they have to correct for a tiny amount of time per day due to time dilation causing the moving cl
by darreninthenet 3y ago
Even the GPS satellites have to take into special relativity - they have to correct for a tiny amount of time per day due to time dilation causing the moving clocks on the satellites to tick slightly slower than the stationary ones on Earth.
- Koshkin 3y agoCuriously, general-relativistic effects needed to be accounted for as well. Quoting Wikipedia, GPS “must account for the gravitational redshift in its timing system, and physicists have analyzed timing data from the GPS to confirm other tests. When the first satellite was launched, some engineers resisted the prediction that a noticeable gravitational time dilation would occur, so the first satellite was launched without the clock adjustment that was later built into subsequent satellites. It showed the predicted shift of 38 microseconds per day. This rate of discrepancy is sufficient to substantially impair function of GPS within hours if not accounted for.”