Pulsar clock

This article is about the timing device. For the exoplanet detection method, see pulsar timing.

A pulsar clock is a clock which depends on counting radio pulses emitted by pulsars.

Gdańsk, pulsar clock display

Pulsar clock in Gdańsk

The first pulsar clock in the world was installed in St. Catherine's Church, Gdańsk, Poland, in 2011.^[1] It was the first clock to count the time using a signal source outside the Solar System, and represents the second type of clock to measure time using a signal source outside the Earth, after sundials. The pulsar clock consists of a radiotelescope with 16 antennas, which receive signals from six designated pulsars. Digital processing of the pulsar signals is done by an FPGA device.^[2]

Pulsar clock in Brussels

On October 5, 2011, a display showing the exact time of the pulsar clock, as a repeater of Gdańsk's pulsar clock, was installed in the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium.^[3]