Solar racing

The world Solar Challenge is a race for solar powered cars in Australia from Darwin to Adelaide. Every two years teams gather from all over the world to compete in the 3000 kilometer race.

In 2000, a team of students from the Delft University of Technology set out to compete in the World Solar Challenge 2001. With their Nuna solar car they managed to finish first and win the race. For the race in 2003, a new team was assembled. This new team built the much improved Nuna II. And again, the Dutch team overcame all other opponents and won the race. After two wins for the dutch, the eyes of the world were directed at ASSET to see what would happen next. The third team of enthusiastic students set out to uophold the legacy of the previous two teams. And in September 2003 they showed the world for the third time that the dutch have the know-how to build the fastest solar car in the world. Nuna 3 crushed all records and won the world solar challenge 2003 with an average speed of nearly 103km/h. Nuna 4 saw yet another victory for the team from delft. At this time, the competition had only one goal: beat the Nuna team!. For Nuna 5, competitors grabbed their chance, pushing the Nuna team to the second place. The fierce competition and good quality cars will surely result in another fantastic and exciting race in 2011!

Solar racing demonstrates both the power of solar energy, as well as, the multi-disciplinary character of sustainable engineering. Students in the fields of mechanics, aerodynamics, electronics, ergonomics and computer sciences are working together on what will be the most advanced solar car ever built. The team will have to accomplish lofty goals in a limited timeframe. Success requires a "go and do it" mentality. This positive attitude is a cornerstone of ASSET-thinking.

For more information: www.nuonsolarteam.nl