What does this mean?

There are two gyroscopes still functioning, and that is enough
to stabilize the station, Suffredini said. If one of these remaining
gyroscopes fails, the station will rely on thrusters to keep it
steady.

http://www.reuters.com/locales/newsA...toryID=4914891

The most likely conclusion is that the reporter is clueless, but maybe I've overlooked something.
--
Ron Hardin


On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.

Ned i bach , Ron Hardin
teithant i thiw hin:

What does this mean?

There are two gyroscopes still functioning, and that is enough
to stabilize the station, Suffredini said. If one of these remaining
gyroscopes fails, the station will rely on thrusters to keep it
steady.

Presumably they mean keeping the station oriented properly. Due to tidal
forces any asymmetrical mass in orbit will tend to orient itself with its
long axis pointing through the Earth's center of mass, giving it a
rotational period equal to its orbital period (tide locking). Gyroscopes
tend to maintain their orientations, so I assume that including some on the
station would reduce the tidal effect.

--
Xaonon, EAC Chief of Mad Scientists and informal BAAWA, aa #1821, Kibo #: 1
http://xaonon.dyndns.org/ Guaranteed content-free since 1999. No refunds.
"The universe would be better with out franz heymann. Any group of people
would be better with out the slime." -- Kurt Stocklmeir, in sci.physics

Ron Hardin wrote:

What does this mean?

There are two gyroscopes still functioning, and that is enough
to stabilize the station, Suffredini said. If one of these remaining
gyroscopes fails, the station will rely on thrusters to keep it
steady.

http://www.reuters.com/locales/newsA...toryID=4914891

The most likely conclusion is that the reporter is clueless, but maybe I've overlooked something.

International Space Station Freedom FUBAR Space Hole One Alpha is
dynamically unstable. Given the opportunity, it will spontaneously
align its long axis with the divergence of the local gravitational
field, thereby pointing at the center of mass of the Earth. Given
that NASA is ****ing incompetent, the thing ws designed to drift
normal to its natural orientation (makes for better pictures). As it
orbits, FUBAR's attitude must be continuously corrected. One of the
sweet results is that the actual micro-gee volume of the giant white
elephant is about that of four basketballs.

Another sweet result is that FUBAR's orientation system is forever
burning through its MTBF. The Hubble telescope, another Space Scuttle
disaster of too little mass lofted not high enough, is constantly
burning through its orientation system as well. All this is a
continuing surprise to NASA.

--
Uncle Al
http://www.mazepath.com/uncleal/
(Toxic URL! Unsafe for children and most mammals)
"Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?" The Net!

Xaonon wrote:
What does this mean?

There are two gyroscopes still functioning, and that is enough
to stabilize the station, Suffredini said. If one of these remaining
gyroscopes fails, the station will rely on thrusters to keep it
steady.

Presumably they mean keeping the station oriented properly. Due to tidal
forces any asymmetrical mass in orbit will tend to orient itself with its
long axis pointing through the Earth's center of mass, giving it a
rotational period equal to its orbital period (tide locking). Gyroscopes
tend to maintain their orientations, so I assume that including some on the
station would reduce the tidal effect.

Are they gyroscopes or angular momentum dumps?
--
Ron Hardin


On the internet, nobody knows you're a jerk.