Researchers have characterized the temperature-induced frequency shifts of a thorium-229 nuclear transition—an important step in establishing thorium clocks as next-generation frequency standards.
Most clocks, from wristwatches to the systems that run GPS and the internet, work by tracking regular, repeating motions. To build a clock, you need something that ticks in a perfectly repeatable way.
The interior of a 1970 "atomic clock" designed to work in the space, exposed at the "Time and navigation" exhibition at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, April 10, 2013.