Principia Solar Car Team (Ra 9) 
The team from Principia College have raced solar cars since 1997, and came 6th in the recent Abu Dhabi Solar Challenge in their ninth car, Ra 9, which they are also entering in the WSC Challenger class this year. Good luck, team 32!
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
Punch Powertrain Solar Team (Punch One) 
The Belgian team from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven came 6th in the World Solar Challenge Challenger class in 2013, in their earlier vehicle Indupol One, and 3rd in the Abu Dhabi Solar Challenge (but 1st among the four-wheeled cars). Their sixth car, Punch One (above), seems to have performed well in wind-tunnel testing (below), and we wish the 16 students on the team all the very best for the World Solar Challenge this year. Good luck, team 8!
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
It’s interesting to look at the social media platforms used by teams in the World Solar Challenge. Out of 47 teams, I was able to find the following social media pages (see also the clickable icons on my team lists):
FaceBook – 45 teams (96%)
Twitter – 37 teams (79%)
Instagram – 23 teams (49%)
YouTube – 22 teams (47%)
Flickr – 13 teams (28%)
LinkedIn – 7 teams (15%)
Picasa – 2 teams (4%)
Obviously some technologies are “in,” and others are either passé or still on their way up. According to the Pew Research Center, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter are all increasing in popularity, with FaceBook still the most popular. I guess it’s time for me to join Instagram!
KIT Solar Car Project (Golden Eagle 5.1) The team from the Kanazawa Institute of Technology are returning to the WSC, after having come 12th in the Challenger class in 2013. In addition to the social media listed, they have a blog (in Japanese) at sckit.exblog.jp. Their sleek-looking new car, Golden Eagle 5.1, is shown above and in the video below – although these images are prior to painting and attaching solar cells. Good luck, team 51!
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
Siam Technology College (STC-1) Team 22, from Siam Technology College in Thailand, are racing in the World Solar Challenge Challenger class this year. They are new to the competition, and we wish them well. After a great deal of hard work, they have revealed their recently built car STC-1 (above). Good luck, team 22!
Update: See some more pictures here.
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
Solar Team Eindhoven (Stella Lux) The Dutch team from the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) won the World Solar Challenge Cruiser class in 2013, travelling from Darwin to Adelaide at an average speed of 74.5 km/h, while carrying an average of 3 people. The institution’s motto is Mens agitat molem, and the students from Eindhoven did indeed use their minds to make their car move. This year, they are defending their title, having updated their previous vehicle Stella to the exciting new Stella Lux (pictures above by TU Eindhoven / Bart van Overbeeke – click to zoom; video below by Solar Team Eindhoven). IEEE Spectrum has also run an article on Stella Lux. It’s a great-looking car, both inside and out. Good luck, team 40!
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
Kogakuin University Solar Vehicle Project (OWL) The team from Kogakuin University (KGU) have been racing since 2009, and participated in the Challenger class in the 2013 WSC. This year they have switched to the Cruiser class, and have just revealed their sporty-looking new vehicle (above). Good luck, team 88!
Update: see also this Japanese TV news story with video.
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
Stanford Solar Car Project (Arctan) The team from Stanford University have competed in the World Solar Challenge several times, and came 4th in the Challenger class in 2013 (after Nuon, Tokai, and Twente). They recently produced an excellent documentary on their participation in that race:
This year, they are racing their new car, Arctan (below and top). The car is named in honour of a deceased team alumnus. Their website also has some interesting comments on their team structure and older vehicles. Good luck, team 16!
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
The Museum of Science, Boston has an interesting citizen science project running – their Firefly Watch. Anybody can register and add observations of fireflies in their local area.
The project has been running since 2008, and has accumulated over 30,000 observations so far (mostly from the US – see map above), which are available online. The graph below shows the result of fitting a family of Gaussian “bell curves” to the data. Observed firefly numbers peaked around June 23 each year (day 174 when it’s not a leap year), with a slight increase in the height of the peak over time. There seems to be no significant change to the timing of the peak.
Anadolu Solar Team (Sunatolia 2) The team from Anadolu University has been racing solar cars since 2007. They participated in WSC 2011, and they came 2nd in the last Sasol Solar Challenge. As the video below shows, they have been hard at work preparing their new car for WSC 2015. Good luck, team 36!
For up-to-date lists of all World Solar Challenge 2015 teams, see:
Scientific Gems 