Breakthrough could pave the way for next-generation GPS in drones, smartphones and self-driving cars, scientists say.

The way time is measured is on the edge of a historic upgrade. At the heart of this change is a new kind of atomic clock that uses light instead of microwaves. This shift means timekeeping could ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Close up of pink-colored laser beam inside lab instrument. Now, physicists at the US National Institute of Standards and ...

Researchers in Boulder built a new clock that is more precise and accurate than any clock in the world. The discovery has implications for exploring fundamental physics questions, propelling new ...

Atomic clocks are widely known to be the most accurate timepieces available, but not all atomic clocks are created equal. Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) are ...

Considering that 90% of American adults own mobile phones, the practice of interrupting strangers to inquire about the time has almost completely disappeared. Since these devices are so prolific in ...

Quantum timekeeping has reached a new threshold, with trapped-ion clocks now accurate to the 19th decimal place and a ...

In humankind's ever-ticking pursuit of perfection, scientists have developed an atomic clock that is more precise and accurate than any clock previously created. The new clock was built by researchers ...

At this point, atomic clocks are old news. They’ve been quietly keeping our world on schedule for decades now, and have been through several iterations with each generation gaining more accuracy. They ...

Physicists at the Joint Institute for Laboratory Astrophysics have developed a new atomic clock that is so accurate, it will not lose a second of time in more than 200 million years. That makes the ...

An extremely cold gas of strontium atoms is trapped in a web of light known as an optical lattice. The atoms are held in an ultrahigh-vacuum environment, which means there is almost no air or other ...