At the University of New South Wales there is a Solar Racing Team (a student run non-profit organization) called Sunswift. Their main purpose is to design and build solar cars for competitions. Their most recent beauty, the IVy, recently smashed an official Guinness World Record for the world’s fastest solar powered vehicle.
As you see in the pictures below, the IVy is a bit unusual looking. It has three wheels and a monocoque carbon fiber body. With the world record officials on hand, the students began testing their masterpiece early in the morning last Friday.
In order to snag the world record, they knew the IVy would have to be completely powered by silicon solar cells. Since the sun is the brightest at around noon, that is when they thought they would reach their peak speed; however, they were able to do it at 10:32 in the morning. The IVy reached a speed of 88.738kph! The previous record, set in 1987, was set by the GM Sunraycer which hit a speed of 78kph. During a race in 2009 (not on the day the students broke the record), the IVy was recorded going 103kph. Congratulations!
Via: [Ecofriend] [Batangas Today]
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