The European Space Agency's Optical Ground Station on Tenerife in the Canary Islands was used as a receiver in recent quantum teleportation experiments. Credit: ESA

Two teams of researchers have extended the reach of quantum teleportation to unprecedented lengths, roughly equivalent to the distance between New York City and Philadelphia. But don t expect teleportation stations to replace airports or train terminals the teleportation scheme shifts only the quantum state of a single photon. And although part of the transfer happens instantaneously, the steps required to read out the teleported quantum state ensure that no information can be communicated faster than the speed of light.