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Richard Branson's Virgin Group Invests in Super-fast Hyperloop One Transport System (cnbc.com)
An anonymous reader shares a report: Richard Branson's Virgin Group is investing in Hyperloop One, a company developing the super-fast transport system originally conceptualized up by Elon Musk. Hypleroop One is re-branding itself as Virgin Hyperloop One, and Branson is joining the board, the billionaire British investor and entrepreneur announced Thursday on CNBC from London. Virgin Hyperloop One will focus on a passenger and mixed-use cargo service. Last month, Hypleroop One raised $85 million in new funding, and that includes the investment from Virgin. Branson refused to breakout the numbers. Breaking ground on a commercial hyperloop in two to four years is possible if "governments move quickly," Branson said in a "Squawk Box" interview. So far, no government has approved a plan for a hyperloop system. The Virgin founder also said that building a hyperloop tube above or below ground is "cheaper" and "faster" than a traditional rail network. The idea of the transport system -- conceived in 2013 by Musk, the head of both electric automaker Tesla and SpaceX -- works by propelling pods through tubes using magnets reaching speeds akin to those of airplanes.
The Dutch government has concrete plans for a test-and-validation track, near Amsterdam: https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/a...
If you're talking about "so little air that the vehicle - without a compressor - only slowly drifts down in velocity", then you're talking about a hard vacuum, and incompatible with Hyperloop Alpha. If you are talking about a mild vacuum, with a compressor shunting the built-up air ahead of the vehicle into air bearings, cite an example of that from before Musk.
And FYI, Hyperloop Alpha only drifts down between accelerator segments; faster deceleration is by deceleration segments and (at lower speeds) physical / magnetic braking.
"If there was an antonym to 'Elon Musk', it would be 'Richard Branson'."
The tweet was followed shortly thereafter by:
But while the former tweet was shared by 75k people, the latter was only shared by 1,5k. Even worse was how so many people still insist on pretending he was talking about the city level rather than the DOT, which has confirmed their discussions, adding "We have had promising conversations to date, are committed to transformative infrastructure projects, and believe our greatest solutions have often come from the ingenuity and drive of the private sector." You don't start seeking approval on an interstate project at the city level. But hey, any chance to bash Musk, so go for it.
"If there was an antonym to 'Elon Musk', it would be 'Richard Branson'."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...