About Chronoscope
Chronoscope is a free, hands-on guide to time in physics — from a single photon to the edge of the universe. Every model is seen from time's point of view, and every claim says how sure physicists are of it.
What's here
Twenty-one interactive labs across four scales (Quantum, Voyages, Physics, Cosmos), a seven-chapter Flatland, three guided tours, concept pages, and the Atlas: a map of the open questions about time and a century of attempts to answer them. Each lab asks you to predict before you explore, because a surprise is what makes an idea stick.
How it's checked
Chronoscope uses physics-based models with documented equations, assumptions and limitations. Automated checks compare worked examples with the simulations; references and confidence labels help tell established results from debated interpretations and exploratory ideas. It isn't peer-reviewed, and corrections are welcome.
- Models with stated limits. Each simulation says what it assumes and where it simplifies. The maths pages give the equations and constants, and their worked examples are re-checked against the simulations' own code every time the app changes.
- Confidence labels on claims — Established, Contested, Speculative, Analogy or Hypothesis — labelling the claim, not the paper. How the labels work.
- References on every page. Each lab and concept page lists its sources at the end; their publication details were checked against the published record. Press releases and AI summaries aren't treated as sources.
- Exploratory ideas kept apart. Workbench mode adds this project's own speculative ideas, clearly marked, each with what it would predict and what would rule it out.
Who made it, and how
Chronoscope was created by Will Kingwell of AgilityAI in Australia. It grew from my visual notes about light and time into a playful way to explore complex physics ideas — and to demonstrate what can be built with AI as a working partner.
Your privacy
No sign-up and no cookies. Your progress — predictions, missions, tour stamps — is kept in your own browser and never sent anywhere; you can save it to a file from your passport. The website counts page visits with Cloudflare Web Analytics, which uses no cookies and doesn't identify you. If you email feedback, your message and address go to AgilityAI's feedback mailbox, and are used only to review and reply.
Reuse
Chronoscope's original written explanations and learning materials are available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0), unless otherwise stated: you may share and adapt them, including commercially, with credit, a link to the licence and an indication of changes. The application code is under the MIT licence. Third-party material keeps its own terms; excerpts from Flatland (1884) are in the public domain. Suggested credit: Chronoscope by Will Kingwell / AgilityAI — chronoscope.com.au — CC BY 4.0. Full terms: content licence.
Teachers are welcome to use it in class: see For teachers.
Corrections and contact
Found a physics error, a broken interaction, or an explanation that could be clearer? Email feedback@chronoscope.com.au with the page link and what you noticed — and, for a physics correction, a reference if you can. Messages go to Will at AgilityAI for review.