Elon Musk's Hyperloop Idea Is Proof That He Exists in the Future
Elon Musk, the co-founder of PayPal, must always be a step ahead of everyone he knows. The guy simply must exist in a future frame of mind. That's the only way he can keep coming up with crazy ideas for how our world can be different/better in the years coming. He already came up with an idea to send tourists to space and created a great electric car. One of Musk's ideas, The Hyperloop, is a high speed train that he envisions traveling from places like San Francisco to Los Angeles in as little as half an hour. For you non-math whizzes, yes that would mean that the Hyperloop would travel at about 800 miles an hour. We told you this guy is ahead of our time.
In a recently released document laying out his plans, Musk desribed the Hyperloop as "truly a new mode of transport — a fifth mode after planes, trains, cars, and boats." The trains would send people to various places via pods that would travel (very quickly) through tubes. Those tubes would be supported by cylinders strong enough to withstand an earthquake. The tubes would run side-by-side and close their loops (thus the name) at one end.
Musk came up with the idea for the Hyperloop after getting depressed over the state of California's high-speed rail system, which is supposed to cost about $70 billion and be completed in 2029. Musk considers the train impractical and inefficient. He felt that it was only approved for political purposes. And then there's that cost. "You have to look at what they say it will cost vs. the actual final costs, and I think it’s safe to say you’re talking about a $100 billion-plus train," Musk told Businessweek.
Put simply: The Hyperloop is a genius idea. The technology behind it is impressive as well. As Jalopnik points out, the key to the Hyperloop is overcoming the air pressure issues presented by sending a pod through a tube. "Whenever you have a capsule or pod...moving at high speed through a tube containing air, there is a minimum tube to pod area ratio below which you will choke the flow," Musk explained. "What this means is that if the walls of the tube and the capsule are too close together, the capsule will behave like a syringe and eventually be forced to push the entire column of air in the system. Not good." This issue is why you feel a rush of wind before a subway comes through the tunnel. To alleviate this problem, Musk would equip the pods with powerful fans that distributes the air through the pod. Smart stuff.
You might have noticed that we haven't mentioned any concrete plans regarding the Hyperloop. That's because there aren't any. Musk said he won't be building it, which makes you wonder who the hell will. And Musk didn't mention how that person would pay for the Hyperloop train system, which he estimated at about $6 billion. But like we said, Musk is a man of the future, and logistics are a thing of the present. Musk is already somewhere else, dreaming up something new.
[Pic via Flickr - Steve Jurvetson + screengrab from Scribd]
