Delegates from 69 countries approved a significant change to global timekeeping procedures at a conference in France hosted by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures on Thursday. The decision replaces the leap second system that has been used for more than 50 years with a new leap hour approach beginning next year.
The shift addresses concerns about computer system failures caused by leap seconds. When leap seconds are inserted into Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), software systems sometimes malfunction because they cannot properly handle minutes that deviate from the standard 60 seconds. Documented incidents include website outages in 2012 affecting platforms like Reddit and LinkedIn, as well as flight delays experienced by Qantas. The risk has intensified recently as Earth’s rotation has accelerated, creating the possibility of a negative leap second, which would remove time rather than add it. Such adjustments pose even greater risks to untested systems.
Under the new framework, UTC can diverge from astronomical time by up to an hour before a leap hour becomes necessary, an adjustment that officials estimate will not be needed for thousands of years. The change maintains the connection between global timekeeping and Earth’s rotation while reducing immediate technological hazards. Experts compared the adjustment to existing daylight saving time practices, which shift time by one hour without causing widespread disruption.
The leap second was introduced in 1967 following the development of caesium atomic clocks, which measure time far more precisely than Earth’s rotation. Since atomic clocks became the official basis for measuring seconds, leap seconds were periodically added to keep UTC aligned with astronomical time. However, this system created complications for computer systems worldwide that depend on precise timing, including telecommunications networks, electrical grids, and navigation systems.
Some countries had previously objected to eliminating leap seconds, including the UK and Russia, citing concerns about impacts on their respective timekeeping and satellite systems. Despite these objections, the international consensus favored the change to reduce infrastructure risks.
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