billed as the fastest way to cross the
surface of the earth
hyperloop represents the greatest leap
in transport infrastructure
for generations with passengers sitting
in pods
that travel at airline speed through
pressurized tubes
using electric propulsion and magnetic
levitation
the concept promises to slash journey
times between major cities
from several hours to a matter of
minutes
whilst it may feel like science fiction
hyperloop is now on the cusp
of becoming a reality this
is the story behind the concept that's
about to revolutionize our world
[Music]
hyperloop was first conceived in 2012 by
tesla and spacex founder
elon musk a white paper released the
following year
musk set out his vision for a futuristic
super high speed transportation system
that would see passenger pods move
through a partial vacuum in steel tubes
addressing the two key factors that slow
down conventional vehicles
friction and air resistance
exploring a potential route between los
angeles and san francisco
musk believed that his concept could
slash the eight hour bus ride
four hour train journey and convoluted
three hour air travel experience between
the two cities
to just 30 minutes under musk's first
hyperloop proposal
he suggested that compression vans would
move air around the passenger pods
to minimize drag and create air bearings
beneath them
floating them off the surface of the
tubes
it should be noted that musk's early
hyperloop concept
is not a million miles away from
izambard kingdom brunel's atmospheric
railway
that ran between exeter and plymouth in
the uk from 1847
to 1848 that system
moved carriages with pressurized air
the air was extracted from a pipe that
ran between the rails
by pumping stations situated roughly
every three miles along the route
creating a vacuum a piston contained
within this pipe
was connected to the train which pulled
it forward
despite its initial success the leather
flaps that made the vacuum pipes
airtight
soon began to fail causing air to leak
from the system
and brunel's railway was abandoned
with an estimated price tag close to 6
billion us dollars
musk's first hyperloop concept never
came to fruition
but the impressive idea and potential to
link cities in such a direct
way sparked intense interest
from inception musk had always stated
that the concept of hyperloop would be
open source and he actively encouraged
others to come together and develop
the necessary technology independently
from his involvement
this led to the formation of several
startups and student teams
developing various aspects of hyperloop
technology
with varying degrees of success
now several fully fledged companies are
making significant strides to bring
hyperloop systems
into reality hyperloop transportation
technologies
or http are making aggressive
advancements
and recently constructed a full-scale
test track in france
but the clear leaders of the pack in the
current standings
are virgin hyperloop one
virgin hyperloop one are on track to
achieve their bold ambition of bringing
a hyperloop system into operation
by 2021 originally formed in 2014 as
hyperloop one the company was rebranded
following a significant investment from
sir richard branson
in 2017. deviating slightly from musk's
original plan
virgin hyperloop one's technology
combines two
basic principles the first
is magnetic levitation or maglev
a technology already used in monorails
to lift the passenger pods
and move them along their rails
magnetic levitation uses two sets of
magnets
one to repel the train from the track
and lift it upwards
and the other to move the floating train
along the track at considerable speed
with reduced friction the second
principle
is the use of a low pressure vacuum
sealed environment
for the passenger pods to travel through
by removing most of the air from the
tubes and having no contact with the
ground
the pods face little to no resistance as
they move
air pressures inside the tube are
equivalent to flying 200
000 feet above sea level such an
environment
enables the pods to reach speeds of over
760 miles per hour
using very little energy by virtue of
being in a tube
the system is protected from the weather
and can operate in almost
any climatic conditions virgin hyperloop
one's
system is controlled by advanced
software
that ensures acceleration and
deceleration occur gradually
going relatively unnoticed by those
traveling inside
having built a 500-meter track in the
nevada desert
virgin hyperloop one have carried out
several tests
focusing on individual aspects of the
system and a complete
full-scale systems test in may 2017
the propulsion braking levitation and
vacuum systems
are all performing well and the team
have achieved a top speed of over 240
miles per hour to date
[Music]
to inform their plans for developing a
fully operational network that is
affordable for all
virgin hyperloop one launched a global
challenge
to find the route's best place to
benefit from hyperloop technology
with over 2 600 entries the fields was
reduced to just
35 potential locations with each entry
enjoying strong support from governments
and urban planners
with 10 winners across five countries
virgin hyperloop one
are now working in partnership with each
of the locations
on how best to deliver the hyperloop
technologies in live networks
in february 2018 the firm unveiled their
first
prototype passenger pods for the dubai
to abu dhabi route
a network that would drastically slash
the car travel time between the two
cities
from 2 hours to just 12 minutes
the advantages of hyperloop are
considerable
like train stations hyperloop stations
called
portals are planned to be located within
inner city areas
with easy links to existing transport
infrastructure
this gives hyperloop systems a distinct
advantage over air travel
where airports tend to be located beyond
city limits
with fewer accessibility options
additionally the system is being
developed to function on a turn-up and
go principle
without a lengthy check-in process and
with accelerated
advanced security checks
another clear benefit is its speed
if hyperloop could significantly reduce
the travel time between cities
it could be possible to live in a
completely different city or part of the
country
from where you work with a commute no
dissimilar in length
to the one you perhaps take today
this opens up a wide range of housing
and employment opportunities
with people no longer having to live
close to where they work
it could also take pressure off our
cities where infrastructure is often
still catching up with development
and where house prices have become
unattainable for most
with speeds rivaling aircraft and nine
of the top 10 busiest areas in the world
being domestic
hyperloop has the potential to
completely revolutionize the way we live
work and travel a hyperloop system
requires very little energy to propel
pods through its tubes
as the vacuum environment poses little
resistance
as such the systems could be powered by
renewable technologies such as solar and
wind
offering a considerably cleaner
alternative to air travel
when you consider the prospect of people
being propelled in tubes across the
earth's surface
at near supersonic speeds there are a
number of questions that instinctively
jump to mind
perhaps the first is the impact of a
potential break or breach in one of the
tubes
possibly as the result of an earthquake
or external impact
virgin hyperloop one explained that they
have addressed this
by constructing thick steel tubes that
are extremely difficult to puncture or
break
additionally the tubes are engineered to
withstand changes in pressure and air
leaks
while maintaining their structural
integrity
theoretically a sudden influx of air
into one of the tubes
would simply slow the pods down due to
the increased air resistance
the pods could then be directed to the
next portal
via an auxiliary power boost
there is also the ability to section off
parts of the route
and to re-pressurize sections where
significant emergencies occur
and all pods are expected to be fitted
with emergency exits
externally hyperloop systems will
largely travel on
elevated seismically designed pylons
that are able to move
and flex independently of one another
minimizing damage
in the event of a major ground shift
sensors along the route would instantly
report issues
to the system's control center
in answering the natural safety concerns
raised
virgin hyperloop one also point out that
millions of people
already travel at high speeds in metal
tubes
every time they take a flight and that
numerous concerns surrounded the use of
jet aircraft
when that mode of transportation first
came to prevalence
while the idea of hyperloop may seem
far-fetched
when you consider the industrial
progress made in the past 200 years
the current rate of technology adoption
in our societies
and the significant advances being made
by hyperloop companies around the world
this incredible new transportation
system
looks set to become part of our everyday
lives in the very near future
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