The 2018 SpaceX Hyperloop Competition was the first time the Rice Hyperloop team competed. The team consisted of roughly 30 members of undergraduates and graduates at Rice University in Houston, Texas. Read below to find information on the design of the pod, the design timeline and competition results.
The Hyperloop Pod Competition
SpaceX’s Hyperloop Pod Competition challenges students from across the globe to create the fastest hyperloop pod without crashing. These pods race inside SpaceX’s 5,000 ft Hyperloop Tube, in which the air pressure has been reduced to about 0.1% of atmospheric pressure. Last year’s winning team reached a top speed of 201mph/323kmh. The Hyperloop Pod Competition fosters an explosion of highly creative ideas every year. This January, we will present our final design package to SpaceX for review. SpaceX will then announce the finalists, who will travel to their headquarters in Hawthorne, California, in the summer of 2018 to race their pods.
Team Goals
Our goal is to create a design that will be selected for the final pod competition in the summer of 2018. In the process, our team will gain valuable experience in engineering, leadership, and teamwork to help us find solutions to the large engineering challenges. We have a strong team of undergraduate and graduate students who are excited to pursue the next steps in our design, but we need finances to achieve our goals.
Pod Design
The task of designing the pod is split into five different team: Structures, Propulsion, Braking, Levitation and Controls
Design Timeline
October 20th, 2017 – New Member Meeting
November 3rd, 2017 – Preliminary Design Briefing
January 8th, 2018 – Submit final design package
Summer 2018 – 3rd SpaceX Hyperloop Competition
Competition Results
The competition will occur in the summer of 2018, so check back later for more information.
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