The torque‐free rotation of a solid body is unstable about the axis with the intermediate principal moment of inertia. Such an instability can be shown with a simple experiment using a ruler. In this work, the equations of Euler are integrated and the orientation of the ruler, referred to the laboratory reference frame, determined as a function of time. This allows a beautiful comparison between the observed rotation of the ruler and the theory behind it.
Topics
Rotational dynamics
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© 1996 American Association of Physics Teachers.
1996
American Association of Physics Teachers
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