Quick Answer: The Precession Motion apparatus demonstrates precession: a spinning body on an axle, mounted on a support stand with a balancing weight, slowly turns its axis instead of falling when a torque acts on it.
Last updated: October 2026
Key Features
Spinning body on an axle with a support stand
Balancing weight for applying a small torque
Shows the axis moving round slowly rather than falling
Mass, distance and spin speed changed to compare results
Technical Specifications
Specification
Value
Use
Change in direction of the axis of a rotating body under external torque
Application
Precession, gyroscopic motion, torque, angular momentum and rotational dynamics experiments
Material
Metal and mechanical components
Learning concepts
Precession, torque, angular momentum, gyroscope, rotational motion, stability, moment of inertia
About This Product
Once the body is spinning, moving the weight or the support point applies a small torque and the axis begins to move round in a circle. Students note the direction of precession and how it changes with the applied weight, its distance and the spin speed, and relate this to angular momentum in gyroscopes, spinning tops and bicycle wheels.
