The other factor that affects an atomic watch is signal disruption. This will likely change in the future, but most atomic watches are regionally specific for now. Unfortunately, most watches made for the United States can’t synchronize with other atomic clocks because they transmit with a different frequency. If the watch moves outside the broadcast range of the atomic clock, it won’t be able to synchronize with it. For an atomic watch to function as it is designed, it must receive the signal from the atomic clock, and two factors can result in it losing that connection. on FlickrĪtomic watches are, unquestionably, amazing pieces of technology, but they aren’t infallible.

If you’re still interested, here is a short video with a hands-on tour of the atomic clock in Colorado:Īre Atomic Watches Always Accurate? Photo Credit: Paul L. The watch doesn’t stay in constant contact with the atomic clock, but it doesn’t need to as 24 hours isn’t long enough for the watch to noticeably drift. It receives and decodes this signal to maintain its accuracy. Collins clock, which can broadcast at a range of 1,864 miles. Atomic watches in other countries communicate with clocks elsewhere in the world.Īmerican atomic watches are programmed to search at least once a day for a 60 kHz radio signal from the Ft. The clock is operated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). In the United States, that is the atomic clock in Fort Collins, Colorado, one of the most accurate in the world. Instead, your watch maintains a signal with an atomic clock. Obviously, you can’t wear a machine that measures atom oscillations around your wrist. So, yes, an atomic watch is more accurate than any other kind of watch on the market. It’s estimated that the most precise clock loses one second every 15 billion years, not that anyone has been around long enough to measure it. Yes, even atomic clocks drift, but on average, it’s a drift of a single second every 100 million years, so you aren’t going to notice it. We have yet to create a clock that doesn’t experience some amount of clock drift. A year after you bought the watch, you would inevitably find a noticeable discrepancy if you were to compare it to the atomic clock. Even if your watch was initially synchronized by the atomic clock, the time will eventually “drift”. Īll timepieces experience clock drift, defined as the desynchronization of a timepiece from its reference clock. Your birthday present from your spouse is likely a fine piece of craftsmanship, but sadly, in the time it’s taken to read this far into this article, it’s probably experienced at least a few microseconds of clock drift. If you own any watch other than an atomic watch, you don’t have the most accurate timepiece available. Rest assured, atomic clocks are the most accurate means of measuring the time science has developed. Understanding the exact mechanism of atomic clocks and how the length of a second was originally determined would involve a much deeper dive into atomic physics.

Since it’s easier to measure slower-moving targets and atoms move slower at lower temperatures, the most accurate atomic clocks cool the atoms to the point of almost absolute zero. This is measured by observing the microwave signals emitted by electrons during this transition. Specifically, what is being measured is the transition (i.e., oscillation) of electrons between energy levels. The number of cesium oscillations that occur in a second is 9,192,631,770. Still, in the simplest terms possible, an atomic clock determines the length of a second by measuring the number of oscillations of a cesium-133 atom. The science behind atomic clocks is considerably complex to explain adequately. That probably sounds pretty cool, but now you’re surely wondering, “What makes an atomic clock so accurate?” 5 Are There Any Affordable Atomic Watches?.

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