In China, a prototype train has exceeded 620km/h in a test run. It is based on so-called hyperloop technology, involving high-speed vacuum-propelled pods. The stated aim is now to exceed 1,000km/h, before starting work on a major network linking several of the country's major cities.

Elon Musk and Richard Branson have dreamed of taking such projects to scale, but a Chinese research facility may get their first. While hyperloop projects - magnetic levitation trains capable of reaching very high speeds - are all more or less shelved, whether in the United States or just about anywhere else in the world, the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) has announced that its prototype was able to travel at over 620 km/h during a test run on a two-kilometer track. And that's just the beginning.

The train reached such speeds thanks to a magnetic levitation system based on magnets, which means that the vehicle travels on a cushion of air. In this case, it is the absence of friction that enables the train to reach such phenomenal speeds. The next test is planned on an extended track in Datong, in an attempt to reach 1,000km/h.

At such speeds, it would theoretically be possible to travel from Shanghai to Hangzhou - two Chinese cities 175 kilometers apart - in around 15 minutes, compared to three hours by car and one hour by high-speed train. Note that this type of technology is not new, since magnetic levitation trains are already in operation in Asia, albeit at a much slower pace. Moreover, here, the train will eventually operate on a completely enclosed line.

In addition to pure performance, a great deal of research still needs to be carried out, particularly in terms of passenger safety. No operational project will see the light of day before 2030, at best. But despite the very high cost of construction, CASIC (and behind it, the Chinese government) is convinced that hyperloop is the future of transport, particularly for connecting large conurbations in a short time. China could become the first country to have a train that's as fast as a plane, but with a much smaller carbon footprint.

 - AFP Relaxnews