SustainableJeroen - Slashdot User

Comment World Solar Challenge news (Score 1) 9

by SustainableJeroen on Sunday October 23, 2011 @05:18PM (#37812084) Attached to: More Interviews With World Solar Challenge Competitors

As there really isn't a central site with up-to-date news in the weeks before the World Solar Challenge, I decided to do it myself. In the weeks and days before the WSC I started collecting all information about all the teams I could find. Some teams have extensive websites, social media accounts, youtube/vimeo accounts while other teams simply had no online presence at all. Very frustrating. I managed to collect detailed information of only eight teams. During the event I took a week off from work, and together with ex-Nuon Solar Team (Nuna2, 2003) member Diederik Kinds I provided near-round-the-clock coverage of the race. It was hectic, intense and very exciting but the large number of compliments we received was worth it. After the top-5 teams finished Friday things have quieted down quite a bit. I'm still waiting for the final timing/distance results of all the teams, it's a bit frustrating that this should have to take so long. All in all, it was an extremely exciting event, with bush fires, a race suspension, more cloudy weather than ever before, more rain than ever before and only seven (!) of the teams made it to the finish line under solar power alone - of 37 that started the race. I hope to be able to do it 'closer to the front' line in 2013.

Submission + - Solar Team speed strategy explained (solarwebsite.nl)

Submitted by

SustainableJeroen

on Wednesday October 19, 2011 @04:52PM

SustainableJeroen writes: "In Australia the battle for first place in the 2011 World Solar Challenge is about to reach its conclusion in the coming racing day (local time). The Japanese Tokai University team is currently in first position, but the Dutch Nuon Solar Team is very close behind them. Cloudy weather will slow them both down, but barring any larger mishaps or mistakes it's very likely both teams will make it to the finish line just outside Adelaide, approximately 500 km from their current positions. The University of Michigan team is approximately 130 km back from the Tokai/Nuon duo and doesn't seem to have much of a chance any more of catching up — again barring anything catastrophic happening to the teams in front of them. Whatever happens, it's going to be an extremely exciting racing day, that's for sure. Yesterday, near the end of racing day two, the Tokai team suddenly decided to slow down significantly. Because the team doesn't release much information this led to much speculation. Do they have technical problems? Did they suddenly notice the clouds appearing (Tokai does not have an advance weather car, Nuon does) and decided to cut speed to save energy? Is it a certain tactic? Ex-Nuon Solar Team member Diederik Kinds (@Racer_D on Twitter) wrote an insightful article on how choosing the right racing speed affects a team's chances of performing well."

Comment Re:It's "University of Michigan" (Score 1) 34

by SustainableJeroen on Saturday October 15, 2011 @06:21PM (#37726462) Attached to: World Solar Challenge About To Start

I apologise for using the wrong name.

Submission + - World Solar Challenge about to start (solarwebsite.nl)

Submitted by SustainableJeroen on Saturday October 15, 2011 @11:50AM

SustainableJeroen writes: On Sunday morning 08:30 (local time) — that's less than seven hours away — the World Solar Challenge will start. The first solar racing car and its support fleet will depart Darwin to traverse the 3000+ km to Adelaide through the Australian outback. It will be followed at two-minute intervals by 36 other racing teams, from twenty countries from all over the world..

The qualification round, held on Saturday, saw Solar Team Twente secure the first starting position in the race, closely followed by Nuon Solar Team and Michigan University. The top ten times in the qualification round were within eleven seconds of each other, and while driving one lap around a race track is very different from driving 3000 km on a public motorway, it does show that the top cars are quite close in performance.

With the top cars and teams being very, very close to each other it's sure to be a very exciting race. The fastest teams are expected to reach the official finish line just outside Adelaide late Wednesday or early Thursday (local time) after which the teams will continue on for the traditional dive in the fountain on Victoria square in Adelaide.

Submission + - World Solar Challenge starts in two weeks (solarwebsite.nl)

Submitted by

SustainableJeroen

on Sunday October 02, 2011 @04:54PM

SustainableJeroen writes: "In less than two weeks the bi-annual World Solar Challenge will start. Around forty teams, mostly made up of university students from around the globe, will battle each other for first place in the de facto world championship of solar car racing.

The teams will race each other on the 3000km Stuart highway between Darwin and Adelaide, while dodging road trains, dust devils and kangaroos. The fastest teams will cover this distance in four to five days, while it is by no means certain that all teams will make it to the finish line.

In 2009, the Tokai University team from Japan unexpectedly took first place in this high-tech brain sport, with four-time winner Nuon Solar Team having to settle for second place. Who will win this edition? There are a number of very strong contenders, but as the differences between the top teams and their cars are very, very small it's impossible to say in advance."

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