On Feb 5, 2015, at 2:55 AM, Peter Vince <petervince1...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Watching the video interviews on that site, with the members of the public, I
> was disappointed that most of them seemed unaware of any technical problems
> the leap-seconds cause.
They also ignored technical problems that would be caused by redefining UTC to
no longer function as Universal Time:
http://www.cacr.caltech.edu/futureofutc/2011/preprints/36_AAS_11-677_Seaman.pdf
Contrary to assertions, changing the definition of UTC would be very expensive,
risky and time-consuming in astronomy, astronautics and other communities.
There are many more options than the ITU has yet considered:
http://www.cacr.caltech.edu/futureofutc/2011/preprints/01_AAS_11-660.pdf
In particular, ceasing leap seconds in the broadcast timescale does not require
redefining UTC.
Rob Seaman
National Optical Astronomy Observatory
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