The main reason they seem to defy gravity is the effective torque applied to the spinning disc has on its angular momentum vector. The influence of gravity on the plane of the spinning disc causes the rotational axis to "deflect".
- Does gyroscopes defy gravity?
- Why does a gyroscope resist movement?
- Why does the spinning wheel defy gravity?
Does gyroscopes defy gravity?
Gyroscopes can be very perplexing objects because they move in peculiar ways and even seem to defy gravity. These special properties make gyroscopes extremely important in everything from your bicycle to the advanced navigation system on the space shuttle.
Why does a gyroscope resist movement?
Gyroscopic motion is the tendency of a rotating object to maintain the orientation of its rotation. A rotating object possesses angular momentum and this momentum must be conserved. The object will resist any change in its axis of rotation, as a change in orientation will result in a change in angular momentum.
Why does the spinning wheel defy gravity?
A Bicycle Wheel as a Gyroscope is a common method of using a familiar object to demonstrate a counterintuitive physics concept. When spun and held by the rope, the wheel will seem to defy gravity due to gyroscopic precession.