Hold on a second: extra moment in time to align clocks and earth

By Michael Koziol
Updated July 6 2015 - 10:13am, first published June 29 2015 - 4:08pm
A leap second is inserted every few years to ensure atomic time stays aligned with the earth's rotation. Photo: Sam Bennett
A leap second is inserted every few years to ensure atomic time stays aligned with the earth's rotation. Photo: Sam Bennett
Most clocks won't show the leap second but those that do could run into problems, says Michael Wouters, head of time at the National Measurement Institute. Photo: Ben Rushton
Most clocks won't show the leap second but those that do could run into problems, says Michael Wouters, head of time at the National Measurement Institute. Photo: Ben Rushton

Blink and you will (literally) miss it, but you're about to get an extra morsel of precious time.