The video of the Hyperloop taking its first passengers to travel on a high-speed ride is making rounds on social media. The Virgin Hyperloop in Nevada gave its first test ride this Sunday but it will take years for it can operate for the public. A hyperloop can essentially be described as an unproven transportation medium via which people can travel inside a vehicle in a vacuum tube. The vacuum tube travels at speeds of approximately 600 mph. Virgin’s system operates on magnetic levitation. Magnetic levitation is also made use of high-speed rail projects operating in Japan and Germany.
Virgin Hyperloop takes its first passengers on a travel journey
The phenomenon of magnetic levitation allows the train to lift above the track in a similar manner that magnets such as poles push the train upward. The magnets also assist in propelling the train just like poles are able to repel and push the train in different directions. When opposite poles attract, the train is pulled forwards. Magnetic levitation has been employed in some train systems since the 1970s. Virgin Hyperloop has said that its track is approximately 500 meters long, the length of the track limits the speed of the pod.
The Virgin Hyperloop’s Chief Technology Officer and its Director of Passenger Experience, Josh Giegel, and Sara Luchian were the passengers aboard on the first ride. They were seated in the Virgin Hyperloop’s two-person pod. The two-person pod includes seat belts, plush seats, and small windows to see the view.
Josh Giegel told a media outlet that hyperloop pods are able to travel at the speed of aircraft but they do so with a fraction of energy consumption. Hyperloop pods are the future of travel. The video of the Hyperloop taking its first passengers on a travel journey has mesmerized thousands of people.
The future of Virgin hyperloop
The Virgin Hyperloop aims to construct systems that connect cities. Josh Giegel also expressed that the future commercial systems will have pods that will easily be able to seat around 25-30 people. Giegel also said that the Virgin Hyperloop aims to carry tens of thousands of passengers per hour one day.
Hyperloop systems are able to run above and below the ground. However, up til now, the company has solely focused on projects that are above ground. This is because tunneling below is more time consuming and requires greater resources. There are several hurdles in constructing a commercial hyperloop. Virgin Hyperloop needs to acquire funding for its next project. The next project is a 6 mile long and $500 million test facility located in West Virginia. The test facility is being built to testify the Virgin Hyperloop’s technology.
Tesla and CEO of SpaceX, Elon Musk also expressed interest in the concept of a hyperloop and announced a similar concept in 2013. In 2017, Elon Musk announced that he had been granted verbal approval by the government to build a tunnel stretching from Washington DC to New York, the distance between these spots will be covered in 29 minutes.
