Rails on the tracks are now going to run faster than ever as Japan has brought to the stage its newest generation bullet train, the Alpha-X which can travel as fast as 400 KM/H. The extraordinarily fast Alpha-X is manufactured by collaboration of two famous tech companies, Hitachi and Kawasaki. You can now reach your destinations before even finishing a few pages of your favorite novel and this was made possible by the exquisite design of Alpha-X composed of 10 electric cars and a 22 meter long nose.
The Alpha-X 72 ft. long nose was designed in order to tackle the aerodynamic pressures at extreme speeds of 400 KM/H which surpasses the already existing bullet trains by a fairly large percent. The company is also designing a smaller nose for the train to later compare the values of the noise and pressures on the train when it enters the tunnels in order to select the most suitable and adequate design.
The unusually high speed of the Alpha-X requires foolproof braking systems too for which the carriages have been equipped with air brakes at the top and magnetic braking at the bottom to provide reverse magnetic pull for instant braking. Test have already been performed on a 10 car bullet train between the cities of Aomori and Sendai and will further be conducted over a span of 3 years.
The train is scheduled to begin commercial transportation by 2030.
Source: Kyodo News (via: Design Boom)