[Errant]

A gyroscope in operation with freedom in all three axes. The rotor will maintain its spin axis direction regardless of the orientation of the outer frame.

[Errant]

Here's a quote from Not by Fire but by Ice by Robert Felix:

"Polarity reversals, equinoctial precession, and ice ages, all march to the same drummer. As do extinctions, new species appearance, volcanism, and rising land. Toss in the specter of massive floods, 30-story tsunami (tsunami is both singular and plural), and radioactivity falling on your head, and you've got the picture."