Final answer:
Adjusting the internal clocks of equipment ensures accurate timekeeping, which is essential for applications like GPS. This process involves synchronizing with international standards, compensating for time zone differences, and maintaining equipment functionality by preventing malfunctions due to incorrect time.
Step-by-step explanation:
The purpose of adjusting the internal clocks of applicable equipment is to ensure accurate timekeeping, which is crucial for various applications. One such application is GPS technology, where precision timing is essential for navigation and location services.
Time dilation, observed through experiments using atomic clocks in orbit, has shown that precise time adjustments are necessary to maintain accuracy. The standard timekeeping device nowadays is the cesium atom clock, which is accurate due to the controlled microwave frequencies causing the cesium atoms to transition between energy states. This level of precision is required not only for GPS satellites but also for other applications where accurate time synchronization is vital.
Moreover, the division of the world into 24 time zones and conventions like the International Date Line are approaches to reconcile time differences across various locations on Earth. Adjusting equipment clocks also involves matching the time with the correct time zone, and correcting for discrepancies between "clock time" or "standard time" and local solar time. In some cases, such as with oscillators, the frequency adjustment is necessary to interpret signals correctly, either quickly changing or slowly changing, on an electronic display.
Overall, adjusting internal clocks helps to synchronize the time of the equipment with a standard clock, record any time corrections made, prevent equipment malfunction due to incorrect time, and most importantly, maintain consistency with international timekeeping standards.