Re: [LEAPSECS] "Universial" Time,"Terrestrial" Time -- time for new terminology?

From: Deckers, Michael <Michael.Deckers_at_fujitsu-siemens.com>
Date: Wed, 09 Jul 2003 08:37:16 +0000

> Steve Allen wrote:
>
> > On Tue 2003-07-08T10:54:32 +0100, Markus Kuhn hath writ:
> >
> > I understand that the term "Universal Time" was cooked up in the IAU in
> > the 1920s, but does anyone know more details about the origin of and
> > reasons for this curious choice of terminology?
>
> It's all laid out in plain French and English in the Transactions of
> the IAU from 1925 and 1928. It is tied up with the decision that,
> contrary to Newcomb who started the day at noon, all national
> ephemerides should change to reckon the day as starting at midnight.
>
  The word, universal, for days starting at midnight, already appears
  in the resolutions of the International Meridian Conference
  held 1884-10-01..22 in Washington DC:

      "That the Conference proposes the adoption of a universal
      day for all purposes for which it may be found convenient
      and which shall not interfere with the use of local or
      standard time where desirable"

   See [http://millennium-dome.com/info/conference-finalact.htm].

   Michael Deckers
Received on Wed Jul 09 2003 - 01:47:39 PDT

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