What Hyperloop Technology Really Is

Hyperloop – It is billed as the fastest mode of transportation to cross the surface of the earth. Hyperloop represents the greatest leap in transportation infrastructure for generations!

The Hyperloop – This idea was first conceived by Elon Musk in the year 2012. In the paper released 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 main key factors which slow down conventional vehicles: Friction and Air resistance.

How effective Hyperloop really is?

Consider a bus ride between Los Angeles and San Francisco. This journey is of roughly around 8 hours by bus and the concept of Hyperloop could slash this eight-hour bus ride, four-hour train journey, and convoluted three-hour flight journey to merely just 30 minutes! Fascinating, isn’t it?

But with an estimated price tag close to US$6 BN, this concept never came to fruition- but the impressive idea and potential to link cities in such a direct way sparked intense interest around the globe. From the inception itself, this concept was kept open source so that everyone and anyone could independently develop technologies, this led to the formation of several startups developing various aspects of Hyperloop technology with varying degrees of success!

How does this work?

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies(HTT) is making aggressive advancements and recently constructed a full-scale test track in France. The test track is known as the DevLoop test track – 500 m long and has a diameter of around 3.3 meters.
So basically there will be a capsule inside which passengers will be seated and this capsule will be inserted into the above-mentioned DevLoop test track. This test track can be constructed underground as well. To reduce friction most of the air, but not all, will be removed from inside this tube using pumps. Also, the pressure of the air inside the tube has to be reduced so that the drag because of air is reduced. In Musk’s model, the pressure of the air inside the loop will be about one-sixth the atmospheric pressure on Mars so this would reduce the drag force by one-thousand times, relative to sea level conditions. This is equivalent to flying above 150k feet!

Also, the Hyperloop would be powered using solar panels fitted on the top of the tube which would enable them to produce more energy than they need.

With Hyperloop technology maturing at a rapid rate and the concept set to have a revolutionary impact, there are, according to experts, these two hyperloop could entirely change the connectivity in the United States:

From Boston to Washington: The northeastern United States is the most densely populated region of North America. The route – Boston-Newyork-Philadelphia-Baltimore-Washington, this would make an unbroken link of over six-hundred kilometers! This hyperloop would connect the nation’s capital with its largest city and beyond, in under 50 minutes!!!

The Texas Triangle: Houston-San Antonio-Dallas are the State’s largest cities and three of the largest in the United States forming a region known as the Texas Triangle. Linking these cities and broadening their economic reach would further diversify their economies by providing more employment and housing opportunities with Texans across the state. This connection would connect the economic zone of over 18mn people with access to jobs in the state government, space agencies, oil industries, and many more in under thirty minutes!

So to conclude, this hyperloop technology could open up the world beyond the horizon!