Hyperloop One showed off the results of its first full-system test of a magnetically levitating rail vehicle in a vacuum environment, and said its next round of testing will target speeds of 250 mph.

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In a news release, Hyperloop One said the test vehicle coasted above the first portion of the track for 5.3 seconds, thanks to magnetic levitation. The car achieved peak acceleration of 2 G’s and Phase 1’s target speed of 70 mph, powered by the company’s proprietary linear electric motor.

“Hyperloop One has accomplished what no one has done before by successfully testing the first full-scale Hyperloop system. By achieving full vacuum, we essentially invented our own sky in a tube, as if you’re flying at 200,000 feet in the air,” said Shervin Pishevar, Hyperloop One’s co-founder and executive chairman. “For the first time in over 100 years, a new mode of transportation has been introduced. Hyperloop is real, and it’s here now.”

Hyperloop One says it has secured more than $160 million in financing for development, and is aiming to begin operations in the United Arab Emirates by as early as 2020. A competing venture, known as Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, or HTT, is also targeting 2020 for commercial services.

Read the source article at geekwire.com

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