Second (metric)

A Second is a unit of time.

• It is a standard Imperial metric.

Description (Specifications)

An Imperial second (a "standard second") is a small unit of time. A standard second is used to overcome difficulties caused by having non-uniform local times on each world and system.

Modern Imperial usage defines the second as "the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom".

• The ability to accurately interpret this value is gained at around TL-6, with the advent of sophisticated electronic computers.
• The common Imperial abbreviation is sec.

A second is considered to be the smallest unit of time within which a meaningful interaction or reaction can take place. While this may be true for a typical human, other species or sophont races may have alternative perceptions of – and ability to act within – the passage of a single second.

MKS and CGS Units

The MKS system of units is a physical system of measurement based on the meter as the unit of length, the kilogram as the unit of mass, and the second as the unit of time. Smaller scale measurements may utilize the CGS system, based on the centimeter as the unit of length, the gram as the unit of mass, and the second as the unit of time. The system has broad applications within science, engineering and commerce.

Equivalent Metrics

Other interstellar cultures have different values for the second.

• Hkur'ghe (K'kree): 2.58 standard seconds.
• Uealaao (Aslan): 1.988 standard seconds.

History & Background (Dossier)

The second was defined as a unit of time on Terra prior to the foundation of the Terran Confederation. It was originally calculated as being 1/86,400^th of a complete rotation of the planet (a Terran day).

Technologists found the second useful as the concept of the Technology Level and standardized ideas about sophont society development began to take form.

References & Contributors (Sources)

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Far Future Enterprises or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Marc Miller. Referee's Manual (Game Designers Workshop, 1987), 57.
• Frank Chadwick, Dave Nilsen. Fire, Fusion, & Steel (Game Designers Workshop, 1993), 5.
• David Golden, Guy Garnett. Fire, Fusion & Steel (Imperium Games, 1997), 7.
• Marc Miller. T5 Core Rules (Far Future Enterprises, 2013), TBD.
• Traveller Wiki Editorial Team
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master Scout Emeritus Adie Alegoric Stewart of the IISS
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science