(Yicai Global) July 31 -- A research institute affiliated with China Aerospace Science & Industry Corporation (CASIC) has embarked on the development of a new atomic clock to be applied in the next-generation Beidou navigation network, a satellite navigation system developed by China.

The new creation is a mercury ion microwave clock designed for deep space exploration and satellite navigation, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The institute plans to build a mercury ion microwave clock laboratory in about four years' time. The clock will then be miniaturized for engineering design, the report read.

Mercury ion microwave clock is one of the most accurate time measuring instruments available today, as well as one of the most difficult-to-make atomic clocks, Xinhua said, citing an expert. Offering greater spatial adaptability, mercury ion microwave clocks outperform existing space-borne clocks by one to two orders of magnitude, the expert noted.