Name: 🔬#MESExperiments 10: Gyroscopes on a String Can Rise But Not if Sufficient Counterweight is Added
Uploaded: 2022-12-08T19:05:49+00:00
Duration: 12 min 13 s
Description: In #MESExperiments 10, I compare two gyro setups when hung by a string: one without a counterweight and one with. The gyroscope without the counterweight is able to precess (magically) upwards from a

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In #MESExperiments 10, I compare two gyro setups when hung by a string: one without a counterweight and one with. The gyroscope without the counterweight is able to precess (magically) upwards from a very steep angle until it makes contact with the string. But adding the counterweight which should be providing some upwards lift/torque on the gyro instead makes it precess at a constant angle until it loses spin speed and starts to gradually drop downwards. This is as counterintuitive as it gets!

Note that the gyroscope weights 148.62 g and the counterweight is 120.43 g as per the weight readings at the bottom of my earlier video notes: https://peakd.com/mesexperiments/@mes/mesexperiments-9-gyroscope-with-counterweight-hung-on-a-string-rises-downwards-magicx1000.

The gyro without the counterweight, thus effectively there is nothing visible acting upon it as it floats and then rises upwards, is initially at an angle of about 55 degrees from the vertical. In about a minute and a half it rises and makes contact with the string.

The gyro setup with the counterweight was initially orientated at about 47 degrees from the vertical; thus about 8 degrees less steep than the other gyro setup yet it still couldn't rise! After precession at a relatively constantly angle close to the starting angle, the gyro gradually drops until just over 4 minutes in which it falls past the horizontal level.

Some further observations, which I covered in #AntiGravity Part 6, https://mes.fm/antigravity-playlist, are also seen for the gyro setup without the counterweight. As the gyro loses spin speed the precessional "centrifugal force" becomes apparent as it starts to precess in a widening spiral. As it slows even more, the precession circle is very wide. Even later, as the gyro spin speed slows down a lot so too does the precession speed and thus the precession circle becomes much smaller.

Later in the experiment, I conduct some forced precession experiments. When I apply a rotational force on the string in the opposite direction to the gyro spin speed, the gyro magically inertially propels itself upwards, and again as stated in #AntiGravity Part 6 so that the gyro spin and precession move towards alignment. Applying a rotational force to the string in the direction of the gyro spin direction generates no rising but instead the gyro becomes more rigid in alignment with the applied force.

As the string gets over wound-up, it begins applying an unwinding rotational force which although is relatively tiny compared to the weight of the gyro, it can still generate inertial lift of the gyro when the rotational force is opposite to the gyro spin direction. Thus, as also stated in #AntiGravity Part 6, this is alluding to the "torque over-unity" or force amplification ability of gyroscopes. And lastly, when the string gets wound-up again and this time unwinding in the direction of the gyro spin, the gyro once again becomes rigid in its orientation and exhibits no inertial lift. Fascinating stuff!

Stay Tuned for #MESExperiments 11…

View video notes on the Hive blockchain: https://peakd.com/mesexperiments/@mes/mesexperiments-10-gyroscopes-on-a-string-can-rise-but-not-if-sufficient-counterweight-is-added