‘Einstein warned us’: NASA’s Artemis program is struggling with a 17-km problem
Produced by: Manoj Kumar
Time Puzzle
What time is it on the Moon? NASA’s Artemis program confronts this question as lunar missions grow.
Moon Drift
Lunar clocks tick 56 microseconds faster per day than Earth’s—relativity’s quirks create new challenges.
Navigation Risk
Even a 56-microsecond discrepancy could cause navigation errors up to 17 km daily, imperiling missions.
Einstein’s Legacy
Physicists Bijunath Patla and Neil Ashby confirm relativity’s role in Moon-Earth time variances.
Cosmic Balance
Earth and Moon’s free fall around the Sun complicates accurate synchronization of lunar and Earth clocks.
Precision Need
NASA’s Cheryl Gramling emphasizes precision for 10-meter-scale navigation in Artemis lunar ecosystems.
Stable Points
Calculating time at Lagrange points, key for relays, highlights further complications in lunar timekeeping.
Global Effort
Astronomers like Sergei Kopeikin contribute to solving microsecond-level variances for international standards.
Future Clock
NASA leads the charge to establish lunar timekeeping, preparing for decades of Moon-based exploration.