A Japan Railway maglev
train hit 603 kilometers per hour (374 miles per hour) on an
experimental track in Yamanashi Tuesday, setting a decisive new world
record.
A spokesperson said the train
spent 10.8 seconds traveling above 600 kilometers per hour, during which
it covered 1.8 kilometers (1.1 miles).
That's nearly 20 football fields in the time it took you to read the last two sentences.
Takeo
Ookanda, who runs an exhibition center next to the test track, said
witnesses erupted with excitement and applause when the new record was
set.
"I
was moved just like many other visitors here today," he told CNN. "This
maglev project... (increases) the hope that Japan can have a good
growth again in the future."
Fastest in the world
The train broke its own record from last Thursday, when it ran at 590 kilometers per hour (366 miles per hour) on a test track.
That
beat the old record of 581 kilometers per hour (361 miles per hour),
which was set in 2003 during another Japanese maglev test.
Right
now, China operates the world's fastest commercial maglev, which has
hit 431 kilometers per hour (268 miles per hour) on a route through
Shanghai.
By contrast, the fastest
train in the United States, Amtrak's Acela Express, is only capable of
241 kilometers per hour (150 miles per hour), though it usually plods
along at half that speed.
Look ma, no tracks!
Unlike
traditional trains, maglev trains work by using magnets to push the
train away from the tracks and drive the train forward.
Japan's
maglevs don't use metal tracks — instead, they float nearly 10 cm (4
inches) above special guideways, allowing for frictionless movement.
Japan
Railways has been testing their train to figure out the best
operational speed for a planned route between Tokyo and Nagoya,
scheduled to begin service in 2027.
That trip can take nearly 5 hours by car. But in the future, a maglev train could finish the journey in 40 minutes.
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