Learn · TED

Talk7 min

How do Maglev trains work?

Ning Zhao · TED

Watch At TED

About

To coincide with the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Japan launched a groundbreaking bullet train that inspired countries around the world to invest in high-speed rail. Today, high-speed trains regularly travel at over 300 km/h, on par with the take-off speed of a commercial airplane. But can it ever be faster than flying? Ning Zhao details the possibilities and hurdles facing high-speed rail transit. [Directed by Vicente Numpaque, Dr3i Studio, Hernando Bahamon, Globizco Studios, narrated by Addison Anderson, music by Zak Engel].

The talk

  1. How do Maglev trains work? 7 min · TED's player

Credits and licence

Institution
TED
Department
TED-Ed
Speaker
Ning Zhao
Year
2026
Level
For everyone
Language
English
Subjects
Engineering, Art, architecture and design, Teaching and learning
Source
TED
Licence
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, as TED states it. Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions. TED's terms
Attribution
TED Talks are licensed by TED under Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International and are shown here in TED's own player, as TED's usage policy asks.
Who can watch
TED gives no rating. Invisible Network shows it to Tweens profiles and older, judged from what the source says about it. How courses are placed