The transfer of earth-time to the planets

David E. Smith

Maria T. Zuber

pp. 319-328

in: Elisa Felicitas Arias, Ludwig Combrinck, Pavel Gabor, Catherine Hohenkerk (eds), The science of time 2016, Berlin, Springer, 2017

Abstract

Understanding the development and future of the solar system requires an appreciation of the processes and physical laws that govern both motion and time in a gravitational environment. Processes and changes that appear small on human timescales may have a significant impact in the long term, and understanding them requires measurements of extreme accuracy. The history of the evolution of the solar system is manifest in the present-day motions and positions of the planetary bodies and the forces that helped shape them. Position and time are interrelated, and it is impossible to provide meaning to a precise position unless the precise time is known. Here we describe recent space experiments that attempt to synchronize events that take place at other planets with time on Earth, how time and distance are interrelated, and how being able to transfer time accurately and measure the positions of the planets can help understand the future of the solar system.