Tag: rotational dynamics
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New Gaia Data Sheds Light on Chaotic Asteroid Spins
Understanding the Mystery of Asteroid Rotations Asteroids are not simple spinning tops. A new study led by Wen-Han Zhou from the University of Tokyo leverages the European Space Agency’s Gaia mission data to decode why some asteroids spin smoothly around their largest axis while others tumble chaotically. Presented at the joint Europlanet Science Congress and…
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Twice Around To Return Home: The Hidden Reset Button for Spins and Qubits
Introduction: A surprising reset for complex rotations Rotations are everywhere in science and technology. Gyroscopes, magnetic spins, and quantum bits (qubits) each follow sequences of twists and turns that can be described as walks on the rotation groups SO(3) for classical objects and SU(2) for quantum systems. A provocative question arises: given a long, tangled…