coordinated universal time

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co·or·di·nat·ed universal time

n. Abbr. UTC
An international time standard calculated by atomic clock and incorporating occasional leap seconds to compensate for changes in the rotation of the earth. Coordinated universal time serves as the basis for standard time around the world.

coor′dinated univer′sal time`

(usu. caps.) standard time equivalent to Greenwich Time but corrected by atomic clocks to match the earth's rotation.

Coordinated Universal Time

An atomic time scale that is the basis for broadcast time signals. Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) differs from International Atomic Time by an integral number of seconds; it is maintained within 0.9 seconds of UT1 (see Universal Time) by introduction of Leap Seconds. The rotational orientation of the Earth, specified by UT1, may be obtained to an accuracy of a tenth of a second by applying the UTC to the increment DUT1 (where DUT1 = UT1 - UTC) that is broadcast in code with the time signals. Also called UTC. See also International Atomic Time; Universal Time; ZULU Time.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.coordinated universal time - Greenwich Mean Time updated with leap seconds
Earth-received time, ERT - the coordinated universal time when an event is received on Earth
transmission time, TRM - the coordinated universal time when a transmission is sent from Earth to a spacecraft or other celestial body
SCET, spacecraft event time - the coordinated universal time on board the spacecraft; "SCET = TRM + OWLT"