I believe I am an early adopter of technology. Technology is what has augmented the human race to accelerate its progress. And over the years, I have trusted and tested many emerging technologies sometimes to realise it was a pipe dream. (Disclaimer: I was part of a 3D Printing company which was unable to build a product that users needed).

So, when Elon Musk announced the Hyperloop, I was excited as well as sceptical of the whole system. But wished they start in India where commuting is a real pain with our over-crowed road networks and our billion plus population.

Enter Hyperloop One

Hyperloop One’s team has a lot of corporate troubles and I will however not go into them. I will look into their technology and try to make sense of its bold claims. They have gone across the world to pitch and promise governments and citizens the dream of cheap superfast travel. Even people in my village of not-so-remote India are talking about it and are excited about the “5th mode of transportation”.

I have been following Hyperloop on the interwebs and have been waiting for some real proof of their technology. And after months of teasing and working hard, they released a video last week of their first successful test track.

Hyperloop One’s first Full Scale System TestThe real action begins around the 2:00 minute mark. They countdown and then finally the pod floats across the 1600 feet or 0.49 kilometres.

Lets deconstruct what just happened! 🤔

A pod made out of metal passed though a metal tube without touching it in almost **vacuum like conditions**.

Almost vacuum like conditions. This is what triggered the sceptic in me. From what I understand from science is that sound DOES NOT travel well in vacuum but in this video the sound is nominal. Even if the sound travelled through the metal, it would not sound like the sound present in the video.

The metal tube is on the surface of earth.

Atmospheric pressure is present on the surface of the earth and although we might think that **14.70 pounds per square inch **would have no effect on the metal tubes, one might be wrong. Watch the following experiments to see the power of atmospheric pressure.

With a Vacuum PumpSame theory of pressure difference is working hereIts not a coincidence that Elon Musk’s the Boring Company is drilling holes 2–3 floors below the earth’s surface for his version of Hyperloop. The challenge of air pressure is almost negligible underground.

The speed was 70mph.

🙄. Most cars can go much faster than that. Yes, the acceleration might not be as quick but the speed is real.

To understand how high speeds can be achieved in real world conditions; we need to understand the technology — magnetic levitation.

This image doesn’t provide any purpose other than to signify my excitement around Maglev.Actually, I’ll let my favourite YouTuber explain it.

Yes, thats a Hyperloop One Engineer with DerekSo using the properties of magnetism we can float an object from the surface which helps reduce friction and which in turn results in much higher acceleration and speed.

We know of this technology for over a 100 years.

Not only do we know of it; we have tamed it! Maglev trains have existed for decades and are the first choice for civic bodies who want fast transportation. And… You may even build one at home ! 🤓

Because of these unexplained science I have trouble believing that Hyperloop One will be the company which brings a new mode of transportation for the masses. I feel Hyperloop One is much like the Edison Illuminating Company of the 1880s which promised a lot but didn’t have the science or technical knowhow of how to get it done.

However, I do believe in the concept of Hyperloop and it is possible based on the initial paper but it would take someone who can work on hard science problems to get it to market.

All said, I hope and wish I get proved wrong. I will be really really happy if that happens! 😁