What is it about?
For deep space missions and even those closer to Earth, having unique coordinates and a shared universal time system will ensure safe and accurate rendezvous and communications between widely separated locations in the Solar System and in deep space. Restarting time at zero seconds, and providing a point in space that does not move, even with galactic motion should provide a basis for charting and planning future space missions.
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Why is it important?
Many standards exist, and will continue, for both mapping locations in our moving solar system and for specifying time, including having a special leapsecond for the Moon. All these systems can be overlayed on the background Universal Spacetime, to provide a unifying system with local pattern overlays to provide local time and coordinates.
Perspectives
One can declare Spacetime Zero at any point at any time. The machinery to keep track of it could be developed by astrophysicists and software designers. The gist of it will be that we leave our past location behind, in the direction of Sirius at 1/1303 the speed of light, as we head toward the star Vega.
Gregory Harrison
Gravitronics LLC
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: A Landmark in Space - Spacetime Zero, July 2025, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA),
DOI: 10.2514/6.2025-4093.
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