It was the Worlds most Perfect Gyroscope
Recorded In the Guiness Book of Records as the most perfect Sphere in existence.
Exceeded only by the Ultra perfect Sphere of a Neutron Star.
The Gravity probe B, experiment uses four ultra-precise Quartz Balls as Gyroscopes, to generate the data required for an unprecedented test to precisely measure two effects predicted by Einstein's theory
One test is called "Frame-Dragging", is the amount by which the rotating Earth drags local space time around with it.
The other is the "Geodetic effect", the amount by which the Earth warps the local space time in which it resides.
The Gyroscope was launched by NASA in back in 2004. Once in Space, a stream of pure helium gas was used to spin up each of the four gyroscopes to approximately 4,000 rpm.
After that, all but a few molecules of the helium spin-up gas were evacuated from the housings, and the gyroscopes were left to spin on their own—a mere 32 microns (0.001 inches) from their housing walls, free from any mechanical or fluid supports. For the the experiment, the near-perfect spherical and homogeneous rotors, combined with the highly sophisticated Gyro Suspension System, in a perfect vacuum, was expected to
keep spinning for up to 15,000 years, without any other intervention! Guess what its still spinning out there in Space today,
After 4 years of spinning in Space NASA has just released the amazing figures that Einstein was right....today!
That....
local time, and gravity, is being dragged around our rotating Earth.
Read about the epic experiment of the century below:-
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/04may_epic/
