We have been watching the Hyperloop project for a while. This is a SpaceX dream to send passenger pods down sealed tunnels at very high speeds. Last year, the Hyperloop achieved 67 miles per second. Now students from Munich Technical University have set another record in their Hyperloop student pod, according to the BBC.
Munich Hyperloop Student Pod Scoops 2018 Competition
Once a year, students from all over the world gather at the Hyperloop test site operated by the SpaceX aerospace company. This is the third year on the trot that Munich has won with their latest Hyperloop students pod.
Elon Musk picked up the Hyperloop ball in 2012, after it had lain dormant for a while. The design uses sealed tunnels to reduce friction and air resistance. Musk hosts the student competitions to keep his project under the media spotlight. He may want to maintain public interest, which has been lagging because there has not been a sniff of a commercial version yet.
Watch the Official 2017 Hyperloop Record Run
Munich Hyperloop Student Pod Makes a Mockery of the Rest
Munich’s 290 mph 2018 student record wiped the rest from the floor. Delft was a distant second at 88 mph, with EPF Switzerland trailing at 55 mph. Elon Musk is predicting speeds in excess of 625 mph so we have a long way to go.
SpaceX built a pusher vehicle to propel each Hyperloop student pod in turn in previous competitions. However, this time the student vehicles had to self-propel. Elon Musk was present in person, and chatted with the teams. “This is really the first opportunity to create a new mode of transport,” he told The Verge news site.
“That’s really what this competition is about – things that could radically transform cities and the way people get around.”
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Preview Image: Hyper Loop Pod Competition Tube
Video Share Link: https://youtu.be/PvC5tUgD-Jg
