Watch Hyperloop One ace its first full-system test inside a vacuum tube

Hyperloop One, one of the leading startups working to bring the next-gen hyperloop transportation system from concept to reality, just shared footage of its first full-scale test in a vacuum environment.

The test marks an important milestone in the development of the futuristic transportation system that can, in theory, carry travelers from Los Angeles to San Francisco in under 30 minutes.

Hyperloop One says it's the first time anyone has conducted a fully-realized test of the system, which was first outlined by Elon Musk back in 2013.

"By achieving full vacuum, we essentially invented our own sky in a tube, as if you're flying at 200,000 feet in the air," said Hyperloop One co-founder Shervin Pishevar boldly in a release announcing the test. "For the first time in over 100 years, a new mode of transportation has been introduced."

The trial run, which was staged on the DevLoop test track in the desert outside Las Vegas, saw the test vehicle use the company's magnetic levitation (or mag-lev) propulsion system to reach a speed of 70 mph, hitting almost 2 Gs of acceleration.

The test boiled down to just a few seconds of footage -- the full run lasted for 5.3 seconds -- as the test vehicle shot down the track within the tube, coasting along the track.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

It's more impressive than the last quick test of the Hyperloop One propulsion system last year, which was even shorter — but the vacuum test was also just a first step toward the goal of 750 mph-plus speeds.

The company called the test its "Kitty Hawk moment" in a blog post coauthored by founders Josh Giegel and Pishevar, comparing Hyperloop One's success to the legendary first manned flight. The pair touted the successful trial on CBS This Morning, giving the general public a taste of the high speed tech.

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It's an exciting accomplishment, to be sure — but let's wait until they can demonstrate a method of the tech that can transport people through one of the tunnels safely before crowning Hyperloop One as the next Wright brothers.

Looping into the future

The company also unveiled the final design of its new XP-1 vehicle, a sleek 28-foot long pod made of carbon fiber and aluminum that will be used to test system at the Hyperloop One DevLoop in the Nevada desert.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Hyperloop One says its "on the verge" of a full systems test on the DevLoop, which they hope will push the pod to speeds of around 250 mph. Those trial runs will take place over the next several months.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

As we noted above, Hyperloop One isn't the only company looking to create hyperloop systems in the real world. The company has a rival in Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT), which aims to have its system up and running by 2024 and announced it has started building the passenger pods for its loops back in March.

HTT shared its plans for its levitation system and established development agreements for a test track in California and a potential loop with Slovakia — but the company has yet to test or demonstrate anything publicly.

There's also Arrivo, which was created by ousted Hyperloop One founder Brogan BamBrogan after a messy split last year. The new company hasn't done much in the space since its formation earlier this year.

As the only company that's demonstrated any proof of progress on the super high-speed transportation system, Hyperloop One might be the best shot at achieving Elon Musk's vision of a future filled with tubes and pods to get us where we need to go. There's still a ton of testing and development to come -- and even with this successful demo, we'll be traveling on roads in regular old cars until we see more breakthroughs.