15 replies to this topic

[BFB]

Quote

China tested a 500 kilometers per hour train over the weekend. Government officials call the record-breaking speedster a “useful reference” for China’s current high speed railway operations. The test train’s speed, according to a Monday report in China Daily, exceeds the world speed record of 300 kilometers per hour held by the Beijing Shanghai High Speed Railway. China’s latest high-speed train has a maximum tractive power of 22,800 kilowatts, compared with the 9,600 kilowatts for China Railways High-Speed (CRH) trains in service on the Beijing-Shanghai High Speed line.

China tests 500 kilometers per hour train

[Colonel Rhuairidh]

i think I'd rather stick to the Japanese original which this is based on/a copy of ( ), considering the sometimes dubious operating practices they sometimes seem to have.

[Fluffybunny]

747400, on 27 December 2011 - 03:41 PM, said:

i think I'd rather stick to the Japanese original which this is based on/a copy of ( ), considering the sometimes dubious operating practices they sometimes seem to have.

Yeah, in the engineering world I know that they dont have the best record...could be serious repercussions.

[DieChecker]

500 kph, because... you can't get from one filthy megalopolis to another fast enough.

[sergeantflynn]

Has it got the braking power to match ?

[King Fluffs]

I'd hate to fall infront of that thing.

[angi chiesa]

Well this should make a bigger crash than their high speed train crash last July. I dont see the point of such high speeds.Trains in the UK travel at 70mph. I am nervous when I travel by rail.

[SewerRat]

@ angi chiesa: 70mph? - that's odd - I live in the UK and regularly travel on intercity trains at 125mph. Faster ones have been built but not in common use as yet. We have also had train crashes and, like all countries, strive to improve safety records and minimise/eliminate such disasters. As for the point in speed, should we abandon jet air travel and go back to hot air balloons and the zeppelin?

[angi chiesa]

ok sewer rat,I choose not to travel inthese high speed VIRGIN trains.I am not happy at speeds faster than 70mph.I fly to Bangkok several times a year No problem for me.I would love to fly in a modern airship,hydrogen filled.I was a fighter pilot in the 60s.You can keep you high speed trains

[angi chiesa]

Wow did I write HYDROGEN filled...Meant HELIUM filled.Ok so I have a degree in engineering,so in my opinion the width,or guage,of the railways in the Uk are too NARROW for high speeds. Also there are often problems with the condition of the rails. A disaster waitng to happen

[Rhino666]

I wonder how many people died in the making.

[SewerRat]

angi chiesa, on 29 December 2011 - 02:20 AM, said:

ok sewer rat,I choose not to travel inthese high speed VIRGIN trains.I am not happy at speeds faster than 70mph.I fly to Bangkok several times a year No problem for me.I would love to fly in a modern airship,hydrogen filled.I was a fighter pilot in the 60s.You can keep you high speed trains

I do wish you hadn't included the brand name Virgin in your response to my drivel. That bearded schoolboy thing that runs the show makes me a little embarrassed about my past patronage of his trains and planes. As for blimps (inflammable or no) I have never tried one, regarding high altitude dirigibles more as the remit of the aforementioned 'adventurer'. Neither have I been to Bangkok (though to a great many other places). Without the pressures of work (blasted customers) I should be very happy to see the rest of the world by sea. I'm also fond of stargazing and as sceptical as you regarding 'visitors' though fascinated by the concept. So let me know when you've a month or two spare, some bunk space and a couple of empty glasses.

[angi chiesa]

Thanks for the chummy reply.Interestingly you mentioned the sea.I have owned a series of sea goilg sailing cats.The last one was a high performance cruiser. Did you agree that our rail track is narrow for high speed. Even with banked tracks leaning carriages I would rather plod along for an extra hour. Thailand has very slow trains..wow sometimes 40mph.Narrow tracks so no hope of high speeds except for the new Bangkok overhead system.Take care Ratty

[~C.S.M~]

wow 500 km/h? I like that  

[SewerRat]

angi chiesa, on 29 December 2011 - 10:42 AM, said:

Thanks for the chummy reply.Interestingly you mentioned the sea.I have owned a series of sea goilg sailing cats.The last one was a high performance cruiser. Did you agree that our rail track is narrow for high speed. Even with banked tracks leaning carriages I would rather plod along for an extra hour. Thailand has very slow trains..wow sometimes 40mph.Narrow tracks so no hope of high speeds except for the new Bangkok overhead system.Take care Ratty

Yes, our track system is too narrow and just wrong for high speed stuff. I always thought the maglev idea worked best (like the airport shuttle that runs from Shanghai out to Pudong). That requires a purpose built track that the train just floats above and geometrically correct banks and chicanes. As an engineering type you'll know all about centripetal forces, beeswax and hairy string. I always fancied a seagoing boat but I'm a bit of a fairweather sailor so would need a lot of bucket space and very little bacon. Cats and tri-meringues look wonderfully stable but I've always had misgivings about any vessel that needs a buoy tied to the top of the mast to stop it turning turtle. Perhaps you can enlighten me, about that and the likelihood of an alien invasion before the end of 2012 ...