Service missions
The Laboratoire Temps Espace is responsible for the two societal missions entrusted to Paris Observatory by the French government:
- the design and distribution of French legal time,
- the production and distribution of solar system body ephemerides.
To carry out its missions, LTE relies on two dedicated departments, each responsible for implementing research and associated technologies to meet their objectives:
- le LNE-OP, in charge of French legal time,
- le SE-OP (Service Espace), in charge of the ephemeris section.
Le LNE-OP
As part of the French national metrology network coordinated by LNE, LNE-OP is the national metrology institute for time and frequency. LNE-OP generates the reference time scale for France, UTC(OP), which is the basis for French legal time. It ensures the international connection to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) established by the BIPM (Bureau International des Poids et Mesures) within the framework defined by the General Conference on Weights and Measures and the Metre Convention Treaty. LNE-OP makes these references available to institutional and industrial users, and to French society as a whole.
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Le SE-OP
Under the responsibility of Paris Observatory and the aegis of the Bureau des longitudes, the SE-OP is in charge of producing and distributing calendars and ephemerides at the national level. Within this framework, its missions are to :
- produce annual publications and editions, as well as online ephemerides,
- broadcast the ephemerides of various solar system bodies (natural and artificial) and celestial phenomena,
- maintain and update databases,
- provide legal expertise to the courts,
- provide ephemerides and data on demand for similar services (USA, Japan), agencies, researchers, laboratories and observatories.
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National Observation Services (SNO)
The Laboratoire Temps Espace supports or participates in national observation services (SNO) accredited by INSU:
ANO1 – Time and space metrology
- IERS/EOP-PC (International Earth Rotation et Reference Systems Service, Earth Orientation Parameter Product Center)
- ICRS-PC (International Celestial Reference System Product Center)
- ILRS (International Laser Ranging Service)
- Clocks
- Ephemerides service
- Analysis center VLBI (IVS-OPAR : International VLBI Service for Geodesy and Astrometry)
- PHARAO
- Laser telemetry stations (POLAC)
- Gaia
ANO2 – Space instrumentation
- LISA
ANO3 – Gravimetry
ANO4 – Large-scale surveys, deep drilling and long-term monitoring
- Gaia
ANO5 – Data processing, archiving and distribution centers
- Paris Astronomical Data Centre
- VO Solar System Objects Portal
ANO6 – Instrumental resources
- FRIPON
