Who built the solar-powered car?A group of 22 students at the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands have built a car entirely powered by solar energy. These students, aged between 21 and 25 years, took a year off from university to work on developing this car.The student team is known as the Solar Team Eindhoven, and their solar-powered vehicle is called the Stella Terra. The car’s model was launched in September 2023.Recently, Stella Terra successfully completed a 1000 km test drive across the North African country of Morocco. During the test drive, it managed to travel through forests, dry riverbeds, loose desert sands, and steep mountain trails.<div class="raw-html-embed"><figure> <iframe width="100%" height="350" src="https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1714218444382498816/pu/vid/avc1/540x540/BcSAgI43gxDnYvoZ.mp4?tag=12” title=" stella="" terra"="" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><figcaption>Glimpses of the Stella Terra. Video by @designboom / Twitter.</figcaption></figure></div>What is so special about this car?The Stella Terra is the world’s first solar-powered car capable of travelling off-road for 710 km without recharging. This has been made possible due to its powerful solar panels and rechargeable Lithium-ion battery.Stella Terra’s roof is almost entirely covered with solar panels. Its solar panel converter is 97% efficient in converting sunlight into electrical charge. In comparison, most commercially available solar panels are only 17-20% efficient.It is a two-seater car with a maximum speed of 147 km per hour. It weighs around 1200 kg, which is two-thirds the weight of a regular car. Its robust suspension system at the bottom protects from any bumps or shaking that passengers might experience when driving on difficult terrain.Is the solar-powered car ready to hit the market?The project’s finance manager believes some work is left to be done on Stella Terra’s design before it can be introduced to the market. The cost of producing highly energy-efficient solar panels is also quite high at the moment.Bob van Ginkel, the Solar Team Eindhoven’s technical manager, hopes that Stella Terra inspires car manufacturers like BMW and Land Rover to make the motor vehicle industry more sustainable. However, the team believes it will take 5 to 10 years for companies to build a similar car.Let’s hope car makers are able to release more solar-powered cars soon, as it will reduce carbon emissions from petrol and diesel vehicles and help us save the planet from climate change! &nbsp;

The car can travel off-road for more than 700 km without recharge.

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