3 ms·
No, time is defined in terms of atomic properties. It is not a function of length. (Length is, however, a function of time). A second is defined as the duration
by rpearl 13y ago
No, time is defined in terms of atomic properties. It is not a function of length. (Length is, however, a function of time). A second is defined as the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A meter is defined in terms of the speed of light and the definition of a second. A meter is exactly the length of the path traveled by light in a vacuum during a time interval of 1/299,792,458 seconds.
- jckt 13y agoAh, thanks for that. I look pretty stupid now...I have actually heard of that definition but somehow I was thinking of time being ultimately defined by Planck units (time required for light to travel a Planck length).