Solar car
Solar cars combine technology typically used in the aerospace, bicycle, alternative energy and automotive industries.
There are various solar car competitions around the world that are generally partaken by collegiate and company teams.
[5] When sunlight (photons) strike PV cells, they excite electrons and allow them to flow, creating an electric current.
PV cells are made of semiconductor materials such as silicon and alloys of indium, gallium and nitrogen.
The first model solar car was the Sunmobile, a tiny 15-inch vehicle created by General Motors employee William G. Cobb.
Each event is the end product of a two-year education cycle launched by the Winston Solar Car Team.
The 2008 race proved that this event can attract the interest of the public, and that it has the necessary international backing from the FIA.
There are other distance races, such as Suzuka, Phaethon, WGC (WSR/JISFC/WSBR) and the World Solar Rally in Taiwan.
Suzuka and WGC is a yearly track race in Japan and Phaethon was part of the Cultural Olympiad in Greece right before the 2004 Olympics.
[14] The record of 91.332 km/h (56.75 mph) was set on 20 August 2014 at the Shimojishima Airport, in Miyakojima, Okinawa, Japan.
The previous record was held by the University of New South Wales with the car Sunswift IV.
The record takes place over a flying 500 metres (1,600 ft) stretch, and is the average of two runs in opposite directions.
Designed by former engineers from Tesla and Ferrari, the car's hood and roof are composed of solar panels.
[21] In September 2021, the company Lightyear was reported to have raised enough money to bring the vehicle to limited production, at a cost of €149,000, delivering the first units in 2022.
[23][24] That funding campaign was successful and the first Aptera prototype was shown and the EV launched on December 4, 2020.
[25] As of July 2023, three generations of prototypes have been built and shown, production equipment and tooling is being acquired and fundraising continues.
