Time is a-changin’: say goodbye to the leap second

<figure> <img alt="Doomsday clock close to midnight with ASCII graphic." data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/09/STKS534_AI_DOOMSDAY_B.png?quality=90&#038;strip=all&#038;crop=0,0,100,100" /> <figcaption> </figcaption> </figure> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">An important change will soon be made to global timekeeping that aims to prevent potential infrastructure failures akin to the Y2K bug scare. On Thursday, the <a href="https://www.bipm.org/documents/d/guest/cgpm-2026-draft-resolution-c-en">International Bureau of Weights and Measures</a> (BIPM) voted to scrap the leap second, an ad hoc time adjustment that's occasionally added so tracked time standards mirror the Earth's real (and inconsistent) rotation.</p> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">BIPM members <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2022/11/21/23470759/leap-second-scrapped-2035-time-computer-chaos">previously agreed in 2022</a> to cease using leap seconds on or before 2035, but this is now being expedited to take effect on May 20th next year, aligning with World Metrology Day. There's an unprecedented reason for its retirement being brought forward: changes t …</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/1012689/leap-second-discontinue-timekeeping-change">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>