The Doomsday Clock's 2026 update could move humanity closer to midnight. Scientists explain what it means for global safety and our future.

The European Space Agency (ESA) has launched one of its most precise science experiments to date — the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES)—to the International Space Station (ISS). This is no ordinary clock — it's a highly precise instrument built ...

For many years, cesium atomic clocks have been reliably keeping time around the world. But the future belongs to even more accurate clocks: optical atomic clocks. In a few years' time, they could change the definition of the base unit second in the International System of Units (SI).

Vladan Vuletić with members of his Experimental Atomic Physics group. From left to right: Matthew Radzihovsky, Leon Zaporski, Qi Liu, Vladan Vuletić, and Gustavo Velez. Every time you check the time on your phone, make an online transaction, or use a ...

For decades, atomic clocks have provided the most stable means of timekeeping. They measure time by oscillating in step with the resonant frequency of atoms, a method so accurate that it serves as the basis for the definition of a second. Now, a new ...

As well as being useful for creating an optical ion clock, this multi-ion capability could also be exploited to create quantum-computing architectures based on multiple trapped ions. And because the observed effect is a result of the shape of the ytterbium-173 nucleus, further studies could provide insights into nuclear physics.