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Mass Asymmetries
Until this point we have assumed that the projectile has been an axially symmetric body.
This allowed us to simplify the equations of motion considerably. Projectiles are rarely axi-
ally symmetric. The asymmetry usually comes about through manufacturing tolerances,
damage due to rough handling, cargo slippage or, more recently, they are simply designed
that way. The purpose of this section is simply to introduce the geometry of mass asym-
metries, which will be introduced into the equations of motion for the projectile in later
sections.
Mass asymmetries come in two categories: static imbalance and dynamic imbalance.
In a ...