Taking Measure Blog: Reference instruments

Reference instruments

A Scientific Christmas Tale

December 19, 2023

’Twas the night before Christmas; NIST staff had gone home. Our director was left to reflect all alone. She thought about NIST and the breadth of its work, from

An antique clock showing a few minutes before 12 is topped with a party hat, and colorful streamers hang in the background.

Auld Lang ‘Time’: One of the Country’s Timekeepers Makes Sure We Ring in The New Year at Just the Right Second

December 28, 2023

As you prepare to watch the ball drop or pop champagne on New Year’s Eve, we’ll be keeping an eye on the clock — just as we always do.

A researcher wearing safety glasses reaches into a box of circuitry and other equipment, which emits a green glow.

Think You Know What a Second Is? It Will Likely Change in the Next Decade.

November 8, 2023

As the world has modernized and our pace of life has increased, our relationship to time has changed.

My Lab Helps People Breathe Easier All Over the World

July 19, 2023

My lab here in Gaithersburg, Maryland, helps agencies all over the world track their pollution levels by measuring them accurately.

Six men stand in front of an airplane in a hangar, with equipment displayed on carts in front of them.

From Waxlight to Moonlight: 21st Century Standard Candles at NIST

July 6, 2022

Before I tell you about the high-altitude NASA aircraft we use and the lunar observatory we are building, let’s talk about the earliest standard for measuring

Monitoring the Oceans’ Color for Clues to Climate Change

April 22, 2021

It is February 1994 and I am on the research vessel R/V Moana Wave off the coast of Lanai, Hawaii, with the team of the Marine Optical BuoY (MOBY) project. The

The Case for Building Beautiful Instruments

March 26, 2019

I discovered my affinity for attractive instruments while working a job previous to my coming to NIST. My boss then had a love affair with the common hose clamp

NIST’s Invention Machine: Making the Perfect Parts

May 31, 2018

On a recent morning, Rick Lake stopped in the middle of giving a tour of NIST’s Machine Shop to ponder a part sitting on a shelf. It was about 25 centimeters

Going the Distance on National Tape Measure Day

July 14, 2016

Whether they’re made of leather or metal, people have been using tape measures for a long time. The first spring-loaded metal tape measure was invented and

Taking Measure