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World Solar Challenge Started in Australian Desert

Posted by Zonk on from the go-sun-go dept.

photonic writes "The World Solar Challenge has just finished the first racing day. It is a 3000 kilometer race from Darwin to Adelaide for cars that are powered by solar energy only. The results from this day have not yet been published, but intermediate results suggest that the Dutch Nuon Solar Team is again on the lead. This team from Delft University of Technology has a reputation to uphold since they also won the previous two races in 2001 and 2003, the last one in a record breaking 97 km/h average. The Tesseract team from MIT was less fortunate: during the qualification they got off track and rolled over. After some fixing up they still managed to qualify into 7th place on battery power, but with substantial damage to the solar panel their challenge will be finishing rather than winning."

5 of 113 comments (clear)

  1. Those wacky australians... by baryon351 · · Score: 5, Funny

    > during the qualification they got off track and rolled over.

    Upside down country did it, the solar car was merely trying to right itself.

    Another oddity, that khaki colour car there looks like a 4 door GTO 'coupe'

    Strange

  2. Imperial units by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    3000 kilometers = 12648.3018 btus per pound force
    97 km/h = 8.03640075 furlongs per minute

    1. Re:Imperial units by mroch · · Score: 3, Funny

      97 km/h = 162,013.839 furlongs per fortnight

  3. Re:I really respect these guys by JaredOfEuropa · · Score: 4, Funny
    you're out in blazing sunlight, no fans or ac (would be using too much extra power, which you can't afford). You start as soon as your car will start (a few minutes after the crack of dawn) and keep going until your car's battery runs down. You don't stop at a hotel because, most probably, there isn't one where you stop. These guys are really building the future.
    If that is the future, I'll stick with my SUV, thank you.
    --
    If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
  4. Nuclear advocates bound to chime in... by Adult+film+producer · · Score: 3, Funny

    sooner or later, well, wanna have a fight ? Lets googlefight and settle this once and for all

    Google Fight - Solar vs Nuclear power!

    Ohh hell, whatever... you guys can have this one but we'll be back.