[time-nuts] Leap seconds now showing on GPS satellites

[Tom Van Baak]

The words "leap second pending" are not specific enough and I
hope there aren't still GPS receivers or API's that do this.

What most applications only want to know is "leap second pending
this month". Some applications need to know is "leap second
pending in future month X".

So one has to be careful how you handle this information. There
is always that awkward time, which we are now in, between when 
a future leap second is announced and the actual month in which
it occurs. It never fails that some user or software misinterprets
the IERS or GPS leap second announcement and adds a leap
second at the end of one or more months prior to the correct one.
Be especially careful about accidental leap seconds on 3/31/2012.

The information given by GPS is very specific and allows maximum
notice, as we have seen. Some services, like ACTS and WWVB,
cannot give more than one month of notice. So when they finally
turn on their LS bit, it can only mean "leap second pending at the
end of this month", which is fine.

/tvb