euclid The Time Traveler's Clock, User Manual

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Figure 3: Leonardo’s Time Viewer
Why Do You Need a Time Traveler’s Clock?
Imagine you’re traveling in time and space. Just like navigators of old, you’ll want to
have some “bearings” back home, so you can return or go to a new destination. Time
will essential to navigation, and we can assume that UTC will always be a good time to
know.
But, you never know—you might end up in the past when there was no GPS (the atomic
CSAC will keep you navigating); or, you might end up before there was electricity (you
can always wind your chronometer manually, and use the printed data to know the
corrections you’ll need to apply to the time that the chronometer displays). You might
travel to a time near the present when you can find electricity, but the GPS system isn’t
operational. You might travel to the future when the time standards and navigational
systems are completely different from what we have now (but you’ll be able to find
some form of electricity to keep your batteries charged to maintain your GPS internal
clock and your atomic-stabilized chronometer.
Eventually, the sands of time may cause the GPS and CSAC systems to fail, but you’ll be
left with your silicon RTC clock. And, in the end, you’ll still have your Hamilton marine
chronometer that you can keep winding for a long time (they have proven to be very
reliable for many years of operation). Make sure you wind it every day.
What if Time Travel is Impossible
It’s possible that time travel, either to the past or the far future won’t turn out to be
possible. So, the discerning individual would want to be able to navigate by land, sea, or
air via GPS, or using a sextant and their atomic clock, or a backup silicon chip clock, or