NASA, together with international partners, is developing a special timekeeping system for the Moon to account for the difference in the length of seconds on the Earth’s satellite. A monthly day is shorter than a day on Earth by 56 microseconds, and this can lead to critical errors in navigation and synchronization of future missions.
The new system, which is not an ordinary time zone, will be based on a network of atomic clocks and crystal oscillators placed in orbit or on the surface of the Moon. It will become the basis for LunaNet – a unified communication and navigation standard for lunar expeditions. The experience of its creation will lay the foundation for precise synchronization of missions to Mars and other planets.
The system is scheduled to be implemented by the end of 2026, when astronauts return as part of the Artemis program.
