STORYLINE
The Backstory
Elon Musk’s Idea
Hyperloop White Paper
Musk’s Pod Competition
Illinois Tech Hyperloop
Partnership between IIT and UICThe Backstory
1799 and below
In 1799, Inventor George Medhurst proposed an idea to move goods through cast-iron pipes using air pressure. In 1844, he built a railway station (for passenger carriages ) in london that relied on pneumatics until 1847 .
Elon Musk’s Idea
january 2013
Musk’s idea for the Hyperloop, an update on the idea of moving vehicles at high speeds through low-pressure tubes. A few months later at a tech conference Shervin urges Musk to share his ideas with the public.
Hyperloop White Paper
August 2013
Elon Musk publishes the Hyperloop Alpha white paper which incites overwhelming industry excitement. Shervin presents it to President Obama, whose science advisors say it’s feasible. Obama says, “Let me know how I can help you.” Read the white paper here.
Musk’s Pod Competition
2015-2019
The Hyperloop Pod Competition is an annual competition sponsored by SpaceX in 2015–2019 where a number of student and non-student teams are participating to design—and for some, build—a subscale prototype transport vehicle to demonstrate technical feasibility of various aspects of the Hyperloop concept. The competitions have been open to participants globally, although all competitions and judging has occurred in the United States.
Illinois Tech Hyperloop
September 2016
Creation of Illinois Tech Hyperloop organization of students dedicated to representing Illinois Institute of Technology at the SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition.