A mechanical device consisting of a spinning rotor suspended so it can rotate freely in any direction, used in physics demonstrations and early navigation systems.
From Greek gyros 'circle' and -stat 'something that stands or regulates' (from statos 'standing'). The term emerged in 19th-century physics when scientists developed instruments to demonstrate rotational mechanics.
A gyrostat will stubbornly resist changes to its spinning axis—this property, called gyroscopic precession, is so counterintuitive that it baffled physicists when they first observed it, yet it's now essential to every spacecraft.
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