In what has to be the geekiest thing done with a video game controller, ever, an enterprising nerd has used Sony’s hyper-accurate Move controller to measure the earth’s rotation.
Used because its dual-axis gyroscope boasts a high dynamic range that makes other tangible motion sensing peripherals look a little silly, the Playstation move is coupled with a few cardboard tubes, a record player and a Helmholtz coil (a set of two magnetic coils used to produce uniform magnetic field, nullifying the earth’s own magnetic pull) to measure the earth’s polar rotation – along with some other particularly nerdy pursuits .
It is somewhat comforting to know that any inaccuracies with PS Move are by design; if they were more accurate, they’d possible classed as components suitable for missile tracking systems.
Incredibly geeky video after the jump.
Source : Gamekit
Last Updated: February 22, 2011
