After Hours

Prototype of The Long Now Foundation's 10,000 year clock

By // November 24, 2010, 3:00 AM PST // HuTerra

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  • 10,000 year clock

    The Long Now Foundation is building an icon for the future with its mechanical 10,000 year clock. The first prototype was designed was computer scientist Danny Hillis.

    For more details, read my Geekend post about The Long Now Foundation.

    All Photos by Rolfe Horn courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • 10,000 year clock: Standing tall

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • 10,000 year clock prototype

    The small prototype of the 10,000 year clock is housed in the Science Museum in London.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Labeled 10,000 year clock

    This labeled image offers insight as to how the 10,000 year clock works.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Dial on the 10,000 year clock prototype

    The 10,000 year clock's dial with the years.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Dial with orrery

    The center shows the galaxy.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Orrery

    A frontal image of the orrery. This eight-foot tall planet tracking display was created by The Long Now Foundation.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Drive lever

    Parts that make the 10,000 year clock work.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Working parts

    More parts that make the 10,000 year clock work.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Gears on the the 10,000 year clock

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Labeled face of the 10,000 year clock

    A labeled close-up of the the 10,000 year clock's face. Visit The Long Now Foundation site for details about how to read the dial.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Gears

    Beauty and function come together in these gears on the 10,000 year clock.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

  • Futuristic

    Part of the 10,000 year clock's time-keeping mechanism.

    Photo by Rolfe Horn, courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

10,000 year clock

The Long Now Foundation is building an icon for the future with its mechanical 10,000 year clock. The first prototype was designed was computer scientist Danny Hillis.

For more details, read my Geekend post about The Long Now Foundation.

All Photos by Rolfe Horn courtesy of The Long Now Foundation

Related Topics:

After Hours Innovation Hardware Tech & Work

By Nicole Nash

Nicole Bremer Nash is Director of Content and Social Media for HuTerra, where she uses SEO and social media to promote charitable organizations in their community-building and fundraising efforts. She enjoys volunteering, arts and crafts, and conduct...