Bay Area Students Enter 1,400-Mile Solar Car Challenge Across the Country

Editor’s Note: A day after the publication of this story, KQED learned that the Palo Alto High School team decided not to compete in the Solar Car Challenge. The team had been preparing for the event for nearly a week in the Texas heat at triple-digit temperatures. Program director Rupa Chaturvedi said she thought driving six hours a day in those conditions would be too dangerous for the kids. “We’re super happy that we were able to produce a roadworthy car, but pushing the limits, based on the weather conditions didn’t make any sense,” she said.

As of Sunday, Palo Alto High School and 19 other student-led teams have embarked on an eight-day, 1,400-mile trip for the 30th annual Solar Car Challenge. Students from across the country built roadworthy solar cars and are driving them on freeways from the starting point in Fort Worth, Texas, to Palmdale, California.

The Palo Alto team, made up of 13 sophomores and juniors, spent six months building their car, which they’ve named “The Beast.” At the end of each school day, students would meet at an off-campus workshop to design, weld and tinker. The work typically involved late nights to problem-solve.

“I never thought we’d actually make a whole car,” said Alice Jambon, 16, the project’s build lead. “And when we saw it finally run perfectly, it was mind-blowing, honestly.”

The Beast has three wheels on an ATV suspension system that the students welded to an open metal frame. Its flat roof is completely covered with solar panels.

The car’s electric motor can go up to 50 mph, but the team is driving it at about 20 to 30 mph. The Solar Car Challenge is not a race. The winning team is the one that shows the most strategy and efficiency by covering the most total miles (PDF).

“The world sort of caught up to us,” said Lehman Marks, founder of the Solar Car Challenge.

Marks, a retired physics teacher, started the challenge in 1993 to motivate students in science and engineering. At that time, electric cars were rare. But they have since become more efficient and affordable. With help from government green energy initiatives, electric vehicles are even projected to outsell gasoline-powered cars by 2050.

Marks’ program has grown as well. The Solar Car Challenge now includes 261 teams in 39 states, in addition to Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Spain and Singapore. “We’re spinning dreams for these kids,” he said.

This year, he expects 200,000 people will come out to watch the high schoolers drive their solar vehicles across the southwestern U.S. — despite projected triple-digit temperatures.

“It’s a very serious project,” said Rupa Chaturvedi, the Palo Alto team’s program director. “It’s putting a human being in the car and, most likely, a 16-year-old on the freeway, right?”

Each car is flanked by a three-vehicle convoy, which maintains radio communication with the driver and shields the solar car from passing traffic. EMT teams and a registered nurse accompany the competitors.

Alaap Nair, a 17-year-old driver for the Palo Alto team, just got his driver’s license.

“All the adrenaline that will go through my body is definitely going to keep me, like, completely focused,” he said. “Completely focused and really immersed in what I’m really driving.”

California teams have been part of the Solar Car Challenge since it began, but this is the first time a Bay Area team is competing. While there are no cash prizes, awards are given for elements like distance and engineering. The Palo Alto High School team is already plotting a new design to enter in next year’s challenge.

“We’re in Silicon Valley, and that’s where things get started,” Nair said. “Being able to be part of a group that starts something that can have a huge impact on the world — just being one of those pioneers means a lot to the whole team.”