Kosmic Standard Calendar
The Terran Calendar (Kosmos) is the standard civil calendar of Kosmos, devised on Terra and based on the solar year. It divides time into seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years, and employs leap years to keep alignment with the orbit of the planet around the Sol (Kosmos). Time is measured relative to the birth of Jovanah, with years designated as either BBJ (Before the Birth of Jovanah) or ABJ (After the Birth of Jovanah).
Measurements
| Unit | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Second | 1/60 of a minute | Base subdivision of time |
| Minute | 60 seconds | 60 per hour |
| Hour | 60 minutes | 24 per day |
| Day | 24 hours | Based on Earth's rotation |
| Week | 7 days | Named days: Sunday–Saturday |
| Month | 28–31 days | 12 total per year |
| Year | 365 days (366 leap) | Based on Earth's orbit around the Sun |
Origins
The Terran Calendar was established to correct the imprecisions of older reckoning systems that misaligned with the Sun’s cycle. By the 16th century ABJ, priests and scholars of Kosmos reformed the reckoning to prevent the drift of equinoxes, which had disrupted harvests and holy observances.
- Reform of the Reckoners: The 16th-century correction refined leap-year rules to synchronize earthly days with the solar year.
- Leap Year Rule: Years divisible by 4 are leap years, except those divisible by 100 unless also divisible by 400.
- Adoption: Different nations resisted or embraced the reform at different times, but by the 20th century ABJ it had become universal across Earth.
Cultural Significance
The Terran Calendar governs nearly every aspect of life in Kosmos:
- Religious Observances: Most faiths measure holy days against its months and seasons.
- Civil Records: Governments, treaties, and scholarship use it to mark time.
- Historical Continuity: Archivists of Kosmos divide history into eras of BBJ and ABJ, reflecting the centrality of Jovanah’s life to human timekeeping.
Trivia
- The leap-year system ensures the calendar will remain accurate for tens of thousands of years before drifting.
- The Terran days of the week were originally named for celestial bodies and deities.