Uploaded August 2015 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
A standard gyroscope consists of a gyroscope frame, a gimbal and a spinning rotor. Of course, in Walter Lewin's demonstration, all he required was a free spinning wheel as the rotor.
In the Manuka Gyroscope, which was purchased off Kickstarter, there is a longitudinal spin axis. When balancing the gyroscope on the stand, there are two options:
- balancing the gyroscope on the shorter end produces a smoother, slower precession angular velocity.
- balancing the gyroscope on the longer end produces a faster precession angular velocity (due to the larger moment of the centre of gravity about the centre of mass) that is slightly erratic due to inherent friction.
Interestingly enough, the gyroscope has a peculiar ability to maintain its own balance when pivoted about a point. Ploughing through the mathematics will give you a sense of why this happens.
A standard gyroscope consists of a gyroscope frame, a gimbal and a spinning rotor. Of course, in Walter Lewin's demonstration, all he required was a free spinning wheel as the rotor.
In the Manuka Gyroscope, which was purchased off Kickstarter, there is a longitudinal spin axis. When balancing the gyroscope on the stand, there are two options:
- balancing the gyroscope on the shorter end produces a smoother, slower precession angular velocity.
- balancing the gyroscope on the longer end produces a faster precession angular velocity (due to the larger moment of the centre of gravity about the centre of mass) that is slightly erratic due to inherent friction.
Interestingly enough, the gyroscope has a peculiar ability to maintain its own balance when pivoted about a point. Ploughing through the mathematics will give you a sense of why this happens.
