Editor|UK Space Agency | Relative Clocks

Directed and Edited by Kyle Waters

Relative Clocks is an artwork by Chomko & Rosier commissioned by the UK Space Agency.

The Relative Clocks are a representation of time dilation, the effect of general and special relativity on the flow of time.

Each Relative Clock is linked to a single spacecraft, indicating how far back or forward in time the spacecraft has travelled since it’s launch.

The front hand of the clock displays the time on a spacecraft, while the rear hand displays the time on Earth. The delay between the tick of the front and rear hands indicates the time difference between Earth and the spacecraft.

This difference is constantly growing, as each second on the spacecraft is slightly longer or shorter than a second on earth. The clocks update every day to reflect the constant effects of relativity on the spacecraft.