Abstract
GROSCOPY, since it belongs to classical mechanics, tends to be neglected by the modern physicist. We have now to depend on the engineers and applied physicists to maintain the teaching of the subject. Its applications cannot be ignored; in the development of modern applied science we find many extremely important applications of gyroscopes; and in the increased use of bodies rotating at angular speeds that are being continually increased from year to year, we find gyroscopic effects that must be taken into account in the design of the supporting structure whenever the rotating body, whether it be engine, wheel or propeller, has the direction of its axis of spin altered. When a motor-car turns to the left, the spin of the engine causes a transfer of load from rear axle to front axle, and the spin of the wheels gives a transfer of load from inner to outer wheels. When a single-engined aeroplane turns to the left, the nose tends to dip; when the turn is to the right, the gyroscopic effect tends to raise the nose. When a twin-engined plane, with propellers turning in opposite directions, alters course, the leading edge of one wing tends to dip and the leading edge of the other tends to rise, so that additional stresses on the structure are introduced. Jet propulsion will lead to the removal of the gyroscopic action of the propellers, and perhaps also to the removal of much of the gyroscopic action of the engines.
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GRAY, R. Gyroscopic Principles and Applications. Nature 153, 277–278 (1944). https://doi.org/10.1038/153277a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/153277a0
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