Innovation
Out Of The Borders
The Hyperloop more than just a pipe dream? How a 19th century communication technology will radically change the way we travel by Michael Magee
Almost a decade ago, the founder of the current leader in space travel, SpaceX’s Elon Musk,
published an open source paper titled “Hyperloop Alpha” wherein the practicalities of implementing a new form of high-speed travel were explored in a little over 50 pages. Musk invited the world’s scientist to develop the concept, and Richard Branson’s “Virgin Hyperloop” has since presented itself as the leader in the race. In November 2020, Virgin Hyperloop had its first successful manned run in a Hyperloop tunnel.
2020 is a year that saw many of our lives put
on hold. All sorts of businesses were affected, from those based in catering and events to simple commodities like hairdressers and sports centers. However, while entire economies suffered, 2020 was an eventful year for the sciences.
Outside of epidemiology (which, naturally, was heavily researched) there were some significant advances; the first room temperature superconductor was created, and while it has some limitations, it could provide the first steps towards
a new highly efficient power source. The five decade old “black hole paradox” was solved, new chemical compounds were found on Venus that could be indicators of life, and our own presence in space has changed its nature somewhat. Hundreds of SpaceX’s Starlink satellites are occupying Earth’s orbit, and last year the same company was the first to send human beings up to the International Space Station in a privately owned vessel.
The transportation tubes we see in Futurama are almost here, under the name of ‘Hyperloop’.
One trope of science fiction movies in particu-
lar is becoming more and more of a reality. The transportation tubes we see in Futurama are almost here, under the name of ‘Hyperloop’.
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