Wednesday, June 5, 2002

Clocks that keep pace with Father Time (Mother Nature, too)

You can't exactly beat Mother Nature or Father Time, but now you can keep pace with them a little more easily with clocks that automatically update for Daylight Saving Time and desktop weather stations that give you weather reports for your area.

Frequently referred to as "atomic clocks" or "radio-controlled" clocks, these timepieces operate like any ordinary quartz clock. Thanks to the addition of a small radio receiver and a microchip, these clocks synchronize every day via a radio signal to the official U.S. atomic clock maintained by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colo., and they automatically "spring forward" and "fall back" for daylight saving time changes. So, they don't lose time and you save time.

Two products from Chaney Instrument Company incorporate this technology in devices that make life simpler. The company's line of Atomix clocks makes having the right time in your kitchen or bedroom easier and more reliable than ever before. While some Atomix clocks have sleek, modern designs, including digital alarms with metallic cases, the brand also offers a complete line of traditional dial wall clocks that conceal their technologically advanced capabilities. Ranging from $25 to $50, these clocks do the work for you at an affordable price.

To make your life even more predictable during the spring and summer months, try an at-home weather station. The Acu-Rite Weather and Atomic Time Station combines radio-controlled atomic time with an in-home temperature monitoring system. This savvy little device gives you the day, date and precise time in hours, minutes and seconds as well as the temperature for up to three remote locations. So, in addition to knowing the outdoor temperature, you also can monitor temperatures in the attic and basement. The monitor also displays the temperature of the area around the sensor itself and includes a temperature trend indicator. The basic set includes a desktop monitor and one remote sensor that can be placed up to 100 feet away from the monitor for about $24. Additional sensors are sold separately.

Atomix products are available at Wal-Mart, ShopKo and Restoration Hardware. Acu-Rite weather stations are available at mass merchants and at a variety of hardware stores. The model with atomic time will be available in time for Father's Day. For more information on Atomix and Acu-Rite products go to www.chaneyinstrument.com.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology is an official agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, whose earliest work in the area of time and frequency took place in the early 1900s with a very stable pendulum clock. The first atomic clock was developed in 1949. The agency began broadcasting the time and frequency standard via radio in 1923 to meet the growing need for standards in the broadcast industry. Precise time synchronization has many uses that affect our everyday life. Absolute synchronization is necessary for high speed communication systems, synchronizing television feeds, calculating bank transfers, and transmitting everything from e-mail to sonar signals in a submarine. Power companies use precise time to regulate power system grids and reduce power losses.

Scientific organizations such as NASA depend on reliable and consistent time measurement for projects such as interplanetary space travel. Fractional disparities in times between a space probe and tracking stations on Earth can dramatically affect the position of spacecraft. Precise time measurements are also essential to radio navigation systems like the U.S. Government's Global Positioning System (GPS). By synchronizing the satellite clocks within nanoseconds of each other, it is possible for a receiver on Earth to identify its position within a few meters.

For more information on the NIST Time and Frequency Division, go to www.boulder.nist.gov/timefreq/.

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