Japan's levitating train breaks world speed record

The train, which floats on powerful superconducting magnets 8cm (3.1 inches) above its track, managed to hit its top speed of 603 km per hour on an experimental track in Yamanashi prefecture, central Japan.

Yasukazu Endo, the head of the research center run by Central Japan Railways, also known as JR Tokai, said that the high speed tests are ways of trying the limits of the train. Once in operation though the train will run at lower speeds, he said.

"By having the railroad track and the unit itself ready for actual operation, I think this has just made the whole thing feel even better and safer. We hope that this will help to lead to eventual goal of future stable 500 kilometer per hour operations," Endo said.

The maglev currently also holds the Guinness world record title for fastest maglev train at 581 kilometers (361 miles) per hour that it managed to gain in 2003.

The company is planning to reapply to Guinness records for its new world speed record.

Japan's maglev route between Tokyo and Nagoya is set to open in 2027 at a cost of 5.1 trillion yen ($61.4 billion), and the Nagoya-Osaka route is expected to be complete by 2045. — Reuters