Stable Platform

a platform not subject to the angular displacements of the spacecraft on which it is carried. A stable platform’s angular position relative to assigned directions is maintained constant with high accuracy, in most cases, by means of gyroscopes (seeGYROSTABILIZER). The platform is designed to house accelerometers, celestial guidance sensors, critically aligned antennas, and other devices requiring a stable angular orientation. It may also serve as an orientation sensor in the system of orientation and angular stabilization that determines the angular deviation of the spacecraft from assigned directions.