Uncategorized

World's fastest elevator: Like riding a train into the sky

Published

11 years ago

April 24, 2014

In the time it takes you to skim this piece, you could travel 95 stories into the clouds on the world’s new fastest elevator.
The elevator will operate in a new supertall skyscraper being built in Guangzhou, China. With a top speed of 45 mph (72 km/h), this lift will fling you nearly half a kilometer in just 43 seconds.
That’s like riding a speeding commuter train — into the sky.
The elevator incorporates high-tech wizardry to give you a comfortable ride even as you’re shooting vertically toward the heavens.
According to manufacturer Hitachi, special technology
will regulate air pressure within the car to keep your
ears from getting blocked as you fly skywards. “Rollers” will keep the car from swinging wildly from side to side.
And in case something goes wrong on the way down?
Newly developed brakes are high able to resist extreme
heat — up to 300 degrees Celsius, says Hitachi.
Can’t wait to ride it? Too bad — the Guangzhou
CTF Financial Centre skyscraper doesn’t officially
open until 2016.
At 1,739 feet (530 meters) tall, the building will be one
of the world’s tallest — though not as tall as the current record-holder Burj Khalifa, which stands at 2,717 feet (828 meters).
And even that building will be dwarfed by the upcoming Kingdom Tower in Saudi Arabia, expected to pierce the skies at 3,281 feet (1 kilometer) high.