“Hey, McFly, you bojo! Those boards don’t work on water!” – Data talking about hoverboards in Back To The Future II.

In 1989, the second movie of the classic Back To The Future franchise came out in theaters. Marty McFly, the ever heroic bad boy, and Doc, the mad genius scientist who invented a time machine, travelled to the year 2015 to help Marty’s son. The film showed a particular piece of technology that will unexpectedly be one of the biggest debates and source of inquiries of a scientific nature in the coming decades. What am I talking about? Hoverboards, man.

Hoverboards are basically skateboards, only, instead of wheels, they hover. After Back To The Future II, bogus rumors spread about the possibility that those hoverboards weren’t just smokes and mirrors in Hollywood but actually existed. Every kid back then—and maybe most of the kids nowadays—clamored for the said device. I was admittedly one of those people who desperately wanted to see a real life hoverboard.

Last March 2014, a company named HUVrTech released a video on YouTube, claiming that they had created a real life hoverboard. They even had Christopher Lloyd, the actor of Doc in Back To The Future, introduce the technology. Tony Hawk, a professional skater and actor, was seen trying the hoverboard, levitating over a foot above ground.

Sadly, the video and the company were both fake. It was apparently a prank by Funny and Die since 2015 was nearing—the year Marty discovered the hoverboard.

I know it looks fake, but I was blinded by my hopes, alright?

However, do not lose hope. Several companies from all over the world are truly working on creating a working board. One of those companies, ArxPax, released a video showing what may be a real prototype back in October. Tony Hawk (yes, the same skater in the fake video) decided to apologize for the prank by showing the world the Hendo Hover, ArxPax’s own version of the device. In November 2014, a video was released featuring Tony Hawk and his friend, Dave Karnie, riding the said device. Unlike the fake video of Funny or Die, the Hendo Hover was said to levitate an inch above ground (but that would be an overstatement).

Hendo Hover, created by ArxPrax. The real thing!

Because I know you want to see it:

Dave wrote an article about his experience:“Describing it as ‘a skimboard that’s out of control’ is an understatement. I had arrived with all kinds of silly ideas of what to do on the hoverboard, but after my first spin on the thing, I realized that all of my hover dreams were way too ambitious. But I did ride it. Although ‘ride’ isn’t quite the right word. It’s more like I stood on it and it just kind of went wherever it wanted”. Apparently, skating on a real hoverboard is harder than it looks.

Tony Hawk riding Hendo Hover like a pro . . . Wait, he is a pro

The article also discusses the science behind the Hendo Hover. Founders of ArxPax, Jill and Greg Handerson, explains that the Hendo Hover works like a magnet: two poles repelling each other. The engines of the hoverboard create a primary magnetic field, and on a conductive surface (any kind of metal, like aluminum or copper), a second magnetic field is created. That is why Hendo Hover, so far, can only be used on a metallic surface. It is similar to Maglev trains—they use magnets instead of wheels to move. However, its electromagnetic field is unstable—that is why it is tightly measured and can only go on one track. The electromagnetic field of Hendo Hover, however, can go in any direction.

It seems like Back To The Future II was a self-fulfilling prophecy—we (sort of) invented hoverboards by 2015 because of the movie!

Hendo Hover is just a prototype, a technology just in its baby steps. Most scientists believe that superconductivity, magnets repelling each other, is the only way we can achieve a so-called hoverboard. However, this requires an incredible breakthrough in the aforementioned field.

Don’t worry, folks! We’ll get a hoverboard that levitates over a foot someday! Maybe we can even have flying cars to add to it. Hopefully, we will still be young and spry enough to ride them.

Sources:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08pSoZMUT10.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSheVhmcYLA.

Popular Mechanics: http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/aviation/why-dont-we-have-hoverboards-15363707.

Ride Channel: http://theridechannel.com/features/2014/11/tony-hawk-rides-hoverboard