Elon Musk Will Build A Hyperloop Track For Ultra-High Speed Transport Tests

@grg / 11:21 am PST • January 15, 2015

Oh, you thought Elon Musk had moved on past the whole Hyperloop thing? That ultra high-speed transportation system he first started talking about back in 2013?

That’s understandable. It’s been a while since he’s said much about it.

He’s still thinking about it, though. In fact, he’s just committed to building a test track for the concept.

Details are still sparse, but Musk tweets:

Will be building a Hyperloop test track for companies and student teams to test out their pods. Most likely in Texas.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 15, 2015

And to encourage people to get involved, he’s considering a competition league to see which student group can build the fastest pod:

Also thinking of having an annual student Hyperloop pod racer competition, like Formula SAE http://t.co/HV9BLCoMb8

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 15, 2015

Literal pod racing!

Here are the key points of what we know about the Hyperloop system Musk wants to build:

The first full-size Hyperloop track (read: not this test track) would run from LA to SF.
Musk’s design group estimates the cost of the LA -> SF track to be around $6 billion.
That trip, based on totally conceptual estimates, would take 35 minutes.
The conceptual top speed is roughly 760 MPH.
Musk believes the Hyperloop would work above ground or below ground.
The concept works by sending pressurized pods through a tube. This tube is (theoretically/hopefully) kept at a partial vacuum, allowing the vehicle to move within significantly reduced air resistance. The pod itself floats on a cushion of air, with the pod’s design meant to utilize air-pressure buildup — which would generally slow a vehicle down — to its advantage.