Saturday 12 September 2015

Prime Meridian 'is in the wrong place'!

I read this story when I was on holiday and thought that it would be a good starting point for the new year; something along the lines of 'do not believe anything that you are told ... always ask questions!'.

The Prime Meridian line in Greenwich Park
My parents do not live far from Royal Observatory in Greenwich Park which has always been the famous home of accurate time-keeping and the centre point for most world maps. Brambletye, itself lies not far from the Prime Meridian, which passes through the nearby town of east Grinstead.

Before the days of satellites and atomic clocks, being a few hundredths of second or a few metres out did not really matter ... but it is over 30m out! Why? Think plate tectonics ...

Royal Museums Greenwich - web page
Tech Times - article
BBC News - with video clip