Hyperloop 'test tubes'

[basjoos]

I've worked with high vacuum systems and once you get the vacuum established, it takes very little energy to maintain it unless the system develops a leak.

This transportation system is good in that it isolates the high speed capsule from the surrounding environment so it would avoid the problem with bird strikes and of animals, falling trees, etc. getting on the track that you have with high speed trains.

On the other hand how would it handle an earthquake if one occurred while a capsule was under way at full speed. If it caused an vacuum leak, the resulting air drag/ compression would slow the capsule down, but how much vibratory motion of the tube could the system handle before the capsule struck the walls of the tube and started bouncing along the sides of the tube.

[jamesqf]

Seems like it'd be essentially the same as a long-distance gas pipeline, no? Though those tend to run about 2-3 ft diameter.

Or to think another way, it'd be like having an airplane fuselage stretched from start to destination :-)

[freebeard]

http://the-air-pump.tumblr.com/post/32812347896/pipeline-pigging

Will there be in-flight movies?

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by oldtamiyaphile

Musk invented everything, don't you guys know that?

Almost everything. Al Gore; inventor of the environment.

[Xist]

I often thought that an interstate tube network with 3 PSI of (at least mostly) pure oxygen would make driving more efficient, but always seemed incredibly complicated.

If a tube car was moving when the line ruptured behind it, would the rush of air propel the car more than friction would cause it to slow?

[hat_man]

My worries would be massive deceleration caused by blockage or tunnel displacement. Earthquakes can do some funny things. I have visions of that experiment years ago with the guy sitting on the front of the modified rail car testing the effects of, what was it acceleration of deceleration, on the human body.

That and in the event of a power failure wouldn't the mag-lev system fail causing all pods to "coast" to a stop? A pod with a light passenger would stop sooner than one with a heavier passenger, right? Would friction from the heavier weight be enough to overcome the momentum the heavier weight would create being propelled at such a high speed? That would be the heck of a rear end collision.

[freebeard]

Both acceleration and deceleration: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Stapp

[conor97hx]

Futurama is becoming a reality, thats pretty cool.

[freebeard]

It's happening pretty fast too.

Elon Musk: "I don't have time for this, too much on my plate"

Everyone else: "Boom!"

[elhigh]

On the topic of collisions, that reminds me of the book "Rust: The Longest War" by Jonathan Waldman. There's a chapter in there about the Alaska Pipeline, particularly talking about the "pigs" they send through the pipeline on a regular basis to inspect the condition of the pipe.

Sometimes the pigs come out in pieces. Occasionally, very occasionally, they somehow switch places so the pig that was sent through first comes out last. Very odd.

And if I recall correctly, there was one pig that went missing and hasn't been found. It's been gone for years. Nobody knows where it wound up. It is supposedly still in the pipe. How that could be possible when the pipeline is still passing oil is anybody's guess.

Now: who wants to volunteer to ride in a 700 mph pig?