Science: Master Clock

Through Copenhagen's ornate Town Hall trooped a steady stream of sightseers last week to look at the workings of the world's most complex astronomical clock. Set in motion shortly before Christmas by Denmark's King Frederik IX, the clock is expected to run steadily for more than 1,000 years, deviating in its measurement of sidereal time by only two-fifths of a second every 300 years. If properly cared for, it will accurately calculate the position of the stars in the universe for the next 25,700 years.

The Copenhagen clock is the product of some 40 years' planning by onetime Locksmith Jens Olsen, who...

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