In this article we explain our design and their performance, of a Foucault pendulum capable of continuous operation with a following system of the oscillation plane. We have built two pendulums, one of 2.835 m length and other of 4.975 m length. The oscillation amplitudes in either case were 1.8 and 1 deg, respectively. In our latitude the precession speed (9.89 deg/h counterclockwise) can be measured within 0.5 and 0.2 deg/h. The arrangement detected some earthquakes of medium intensity that took place as far as 765 km.
See http://www.physics.uoguelph.ca/foucault/foucault1.html for a discussion of the mechanics of a Foucault pendulum.
© 2010 American Institute of Physics. American Institute of Physics You do not currently have access to this content.You could not be signed in. Please check your credentials and make sure you have an active account and try again.