posted by admin on May 3
I know uberfast trains are nothing that new, but I am still amazed at the technology and after reading a recent article about their development, thought I would share it with you.
Basically, the MagLev train has no wheels, no engine and no overhead cables, just a trackway with no rails – yet it can travel at speeds of up to 500kph. That means you could get from Paris to Rome in just over 2 hours – about the same time it would take to fly there.
So how does it work?
Well, MagLev is short for Magnetic Levitation and it does just that. Using the old principle known to every small child – that opposite poles on a magnet attract each other while the same poles repel each other.
By creating a trackway of specific electromagnetic fields creating magnetic fields for a specific amount of time will actually cause the train to move forwards while also raising it off the ground. And by removing all contact with anything (i.e the floor) there will be no friction, thus enabling the train to reach such amazingly unbelievable speeds!
This train is officially described as flying as it moves on a cushion of air so to speak, and can reach 300kph in just 2 minutes – 400kph in just 3. And the ingredients for this machine to work:
1) A large electrical power source not housed in the train.
2) Metal coils along the length of the trackway – which is similar to a chute.
3) Guidance magnets along the length of the train.
However, because this transport system is not at all compatible with existing train networks, you won’t find these all over the place. It is just not cost effective to replace the old with the new. You need to start from scratch with these, so they are popping up only where space and no competition allows.
With only 2 mentioned in my article – one running the 30km from Shang-Hai to it’s airport, and another near the Japanese city of Nagoya, I’m sure there will soon be more due to another factor:
They run virtually pollution free!
