A navigation instrument that uses a rapidly spinning rotor to maintain a constant direction relative to true north, independent of magnetic fields.
Compound of 'gyro' (spinning) and 'compass.' Invented in the early 1900s by Leon Foucault and later improved, revolutionizing naval navigation.
Gyrocompasses are why submarines can navigate perfectly underwater where magnets are useless—a spinning wheel remembers which way is north better than Earth's magnetic field can tell you!
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