Many thanks to Steve Allen who informed us on 2011-06-17 about
three revealing documents:
http://www.bipm.org/cc/CCTF/Allowed/18/CCTF_09-38_CGPM-ITU-resp.pdf
http://www.bipm.org/cc/CCTF/Allowed/18/CCTF_09-37_UTC_possible_redefinition.pdf
http://www.bipm.org/cc/CCTF/Allowed/18/CCTF_09-27_note_on_UTC-ITU-R.pdf
I am not so much surprised that politics seem to play a big role
in the lofty circles of the CCTF, the BIPM consultative committee
on time and frequency. What I find really embarrassing is in the
third of the sources CCTF/09-27. In it, the CCTF state that
"UT1 is computed from the raw observed universal time UT0
by correcting it for the effect of polar motion on the
longitude of the observing site."
This hasn't even been fully correct during the times when UT1 was
observed with zenith telescopes (before about 1980). It is incorrect
today -- all the seven parameters of Earth orientation are of course
determined together, and UT0 is no longer needed nor used by anybody.
Do we really want those people decide on the future of UTC when
they do not even know how UT1 is currently determined? And this
document bears the logo of the BIPM and is signed by its director!
Michael Deckers.
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