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Reference.org
Axial parallelism
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<p>Axial parallelism (also called gyroscopic stiffness, inertia or rigidity, or "rigidity in space") is the characteristic of a rotating body in which the direction of the axis of <a href="/facts/Rotation_around_a_fixed_axis/PGcg3IY5">rotation remains fixed</a> as the object moves through <a href="/facts/Space/tq6LUM3C">space</a>. In <a href="/facts/Astronomy/0ArJVM1p">astronomy</a>, this characteristic is found in <a href="/facts/Astronomical_bodies/BCHLa0Q2">astronomical bodies</a> in <a href="/facts/Orbit/nD2TPySG">orbit</a>. It is the same effect that causes a <a href="/facts/Gyroscope/UjXGsfMq">gyroscope</a>'s axis of rotation to remain constant as <a href="/facts/Earth/HLLmDfj0">Earth</a> rotates, allowing the devices to measure <a href="/facts/Earth%2527s_rotation/mDbXcKUx">Earth's rotation</a>. </p>