Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!sjsca4!poffen
From: poffen@sj.ate.slb.com (Russ Poffenberger)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.time.ntp
Subject: Re: WWV vs. The Naval Observatory Clock -- Who's Right ?
Keywords: time standards timex
Message-ID: <1990Dec31.203627.26651@sj.ate.slb.com>
Date: 31 Dec 90 20:36:27 GMT
References: <63354@petro.UUCP> <69@rel.mi.org>
Reply-To: poffen@sj.ate.slb.com (Russ Poffenberger)
Distribution: usa
Organization: Schlumberger Technologies, San Jose, CA.
Lines: 28

In article <69@rel.mi.org> bob@rel.mi.org (Bob Leffler) writes:
>In article <63354@petro.UUCP> root@petro.UUCP (Petty System God) writes:
>>the Naval Observatory was reporting time about 12 seconds behind WWV.
>>To confirm the observation I called back the Naval Observatory with cu and
>>let it report while WWV was reporting over the shortwave -- sure enough when
>>WWV hit 124900 the Naval Observatory was reporting about 124848.
>
>My first guess for the difference is the delay intransmitting the data via
>the different transports.  i.e.  How long does it for the data to transmit
>through the numberous switches, land lines, satelites, etc to reach your
>modem?  I'm sure that it is different than shortwave.
>
>bob
>

Well, assuming that the signal (over the phone) travels at the speed of light
(actually probably considerably less, maybe half), 12 seconds means about a
million miles, even geo-stationary satellites are only 22,000 miles away, round
trip is 44,000 miles.

If I make long distance calls, especially overseas, there is a definite time
lag, but nowhere near 12 seconds.


Russ Poffenberger               DOMAIN: poffen@sj.ate.slb.com
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