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Houston, we have a time zone problem!

Join me at the watercooler to answer today's question.

watercooler-questions
Stuart Clark
Amazon Employee
Published Apr 4, 2024
The White House wants US space agency NASA to develop a new time zone for the Moon.
Developers: Great another timezone zone to support!
Lunar Timekeepers Needed
White House wants Moon to have its own time zone
This will be called 'Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC)' and developed because of the different gravitational field strength on the Moon. Plus, time moves quicker there relative to Earth, 58.7 microseconds every day. So, without relying on external libraries, how would you, a timekeeping extraordinaire, design a system to display the current date and time on the lunar surface for future colonists?

How are you solving this?

Bonus points for:
  • Accounting for the Moon's funky rotation: It takes about 27.3 Earth days to spin on its axis, leading to a long lunar day and night cycle.
  • Handling the lunar day/night: A lunar day lasts roughly 14.7 Earth days, with scorching sunshine followed by a brutally long period of darkness.
  • Usability for Moon citizens: Think: human-readable formats and intuitive transitions between day and night.
Share your ideas in the comments below!
 

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