Quote from: HuDaFuK on May 12, 2016, 10:57:32 AM
Quote from: whiterabbit on May 12, 2016, 10:46:48 AMI remember Japan dabbing into that concept back in the late 90's... it's full of impracticality.
Maglev transport systems have been around a lot longer than that - the first commercially operating one was opened at Birmingham Airport in the UK in the mid-80s and was in use for about a decade. They've now got maglevs in Korea and are planning on building high-speed commercial trains in Japan and even Russia. It's far from dead technology.
Not the maglev but a "tunnel airmass flow" system. Right now the largest problem with fast trains is the noise, especially when exiting tunnels. The concept of a "tube" could theoretically fix that major hurdle towards greater speeds. However research done into the theory only resulted in more and more hurdles to jump over. This current American try is heading for the same conclusion. Although, really, they haven't even got the maglev™ part down from the looks of it.
Still look at it another way, is all the headache worth another 200 mph? They're simpler concepts and theories already being tested on traditional heavy rail maglev systems that may offer speeds of near 400mph. I mean ticket cost alone would be prohibiting to the average rider.
We, as in America, should have invested and built a nation wide maglev system long ago, however the benefit from... oh crap, I just noticed another major huge problem with the hyperloop, the test was trying to accelerate the pod from a pure stop up to full speed in 60 seconds. The energy required to do that is astronomical. Maglev is efficient over long distances once it has come up to speed, however it needs about 12 miles to do so. Which is why you do not find maglev trains on local routes. The electricity use would bankrupt any attempt. What they hell are they thinking here?
Quote from: Corporal Hicks on May 12, 2016, 12:22:00 PM
I wouldn't mind having a ride on one of those. They look impressive.
Total number of confirmed exoplanets has gone up: http://news.discovery.com/space/kepler-space-telescope-confirms-1284-new-planets-160510.htm
They really needed to point that thing at Zeta II Reticuli. I'm sure they would have found a gas giant in that system.
