World Solar Challenge: The Road to Darwin

(map shows altitude in metres – click to zoom; data is from worldclim.org)

The World Solar Challenge is coming up again this October (see also my hyperlinked list of teams), with the usual solar-powered dash down the Stuart Highway from Darwin to Adelaide. But the road to Darwin is just as tough, with teams spending time raising money and constructing their vehicles. Some of the teams had a trial run at the Abu Dhabi Solar Challenge.

Stanford (16) have an illustrated blog of their manufacturing process, while the Belgian Punch Powertrain Solar Team (8) has this video of their design process:

In the (Dutch) video below, Solar Team Twente (21) discuss their new Red One car, and also their educational activities:

And, of course, there is this classic story from the 1990 race:

Weather Outlook for October

(map shows average max temperatures in °C – click to zoom; data is from worldclim.org)

Darwin: average max 33.2°C, min 24.9°C, 9.5 hours sun, 7 days rain/month
Alice Springs: average max 30.9°C, min 14.8°C, 10 hours sun, 5 days rain/month
Adelaide: average max 21.3°C, min 11.1°C, 8.3 hours sun, 11 days rain/month
(from this table)