Solar-Powered Car Leaves Half Moon Bay for Trip Around the World
A group of German students left Half Moon Bay’s Harbor View Inn on Tuesday morning to embark upon the U.S.-leg of a worldwide quest to set a Guinness World Record for the farthest distance ever traveled by a solar-powered car.
The car — a two-seater sports model dubbed the SolarWorld GranTurismo (GT) — runs on a battery charged by the sun via solar panels. It was developed by a team of engineering, business and graphic arts students from Germany’s Bochum University of Applied Sciences, according to Devon Cichoski, a spokeswoman for Hillsboro, Ore.- and German-based solar panel manufacturing company SolarWorld.
“The SolarWorld GT is unique among solar cars in that it’s designed to travel long distances,” Cichoski said. “Other solar cars are designed for speed.”
While the car can run at 62 to 63 miles per hour, Cichoski said, it’s most comfortable cruising between 30-40 miles per hour.
The students aspire to break the world record by driving the SolarWorld GT over 21,000 miles.
The trip around the world is estimated to take over a year to complete. Beginning in Oct. 2011, the car journeyed across Australia and New Zealand before starting its U.S. leg in Half Moon Bay. While between 10 and 15 students are taking turns driving the car across the U.S. through a route that is scheduled to take it through Arizona, Texas and Florida, 30 students make up the worldwide team which will navigate it through Europe, Africa and Asia after it leaves the U.S., Cichoski said. The SolarWorldGT will conclude its journey in Australia in late 2012, according to the company.
SolarWorld sponsored the development and manufacture of the car, which cost between $500,000-600,000 to make over the last year or two, Cichoski said. The company has had a solar car sponsorship agreement in place with the Bochum University of Applied Sciences since 2006.
The car sports three square meters of SolarWorld’s panels on the roof of the car and an additional three square meters of panels which can be taken out and charged when the car is stopped. The supplemental panels are stored inside the body of the car.
According to Cichoski, the SolarWorld GT first arrived in the U.S. at the Port of Oakland and was then transported by trailer to Half Moon Bay.
Why Half Moon Bay?
Because of the long distance the car is scheduled to travel, the students wanted to take smaller roads if possible, which enables the car to drive at a speed closer to what it is most comfortable with, according to Cichoski. Less traffic and access to quieter and more scenic highways and roads were also reasons, Cichoski said.
On Tuesday, the students left Half Moon Bay at 11 a.m. They planned to drive south on Highway 1 and stop overnight in Santa Cruz, according to Cichoski.
“The students fielded a lot of questions about the car from the staff and guests at the Harbor View Inn in Half Moon Bay,” she said.
A support car driven by students has been following the SolarWorld GT on the road in case there is a need for support, she added.
This is the second solar car developed at the Bochum University of Applied Sciences sponsored by SolarWorld.
“The first car that students developed was more of a race car,” Cichoski said. “The car attracted a lot of attention but the students felt they were missing the opportunity to develop something the public could use — so the second group of students designed something based on what might be possible in the future.”
Though no public events were scheduled to showcase the car in Half Moon Bay or Santa Cruz, the students and the SolarWorld GT will be at UC Santa Barbara’s Bren School of Environmental Management on Feb. 4. On Feb. 6, the car will be on display for the public at SolarWorld’s Camarillo, Calif. offices.
“SolarWorld is a panel manufacturer, but we choose to sponsor projects like this because of the awareness the car brings to the potential of solar,” Cichoski said.
“The car can act as an ambassador for solar and get the public inspired,” she said.
source: HalfMoonBayPatch
Classifying Solar Eruptions
The sun erupted on January 22-23, 2012 with an M8.7 class flare, captured here in a movie by the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). The flare wasn’t quite as strong as an X-class, but the associated solar energetic particle (SEP) event caused the biggest solar radiation storm since 2003. (Credit: NASA/SDO/Helioviewer)
ScienceDaily (Jan. 25, 2012) — Solar flares are giant explosions on the sun that send energy, light and high speed particles into space. These flares are often associated with solar magnetic storms known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs). While these are the most common solar events, the sun can also emit streams of very fast protons — known as solar energetic particle (SEP) events — and disturbances in the solar wind known as corotating interaction regions (CIRs). All of these can produce a variety of “storms” on Earth that can — if strong enough — interfere with short wave radio communications, GPS signals, and Earth’s power grid, among other things.
The amount of solar activity increases approximately every 11 years, and the sun is currently moving toward another solar maximum, likely in 2013. That means more flares will be coming, some small and some big enough to send their radiation all the way to Earth.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has devised categories for the flares and various storms. The biggest flares are known as “X-class flares” based on a classification system that divides solar flares according to their strength. The smallest ones are A-class (near background levels), followed by B, C, M, and X. Similar to the Richter scale for earthquakes, each letter represents a 10-fold increase in energy output. So an X is ten times an M and 100 times a C. Within each letter class there is a finer scale from 1 to 9.
C-class and smaller flares are too weak to noticeably affect Earth. M-class flares can cause brief radio blackouts at the poles and minor radiation storms that might endanger astronauts.
And then come the X-class flares. Although X is the last letter, there are flares more than 10 times the power of an X1, so X-class flares can go higher than 9. The most powerful flare measured with modern methods was in 2003, during the last solar maximum, and it was so powerful that it overloaded the sensors measuring it. The sensors cut out at X15, but the flare was estimated to be as high as an X28.
The biggest X-class flares are by far the largest explosions in the solar system and are awesome to watch. Loops tens of times the size of Earth leap up off the sun’s surface when the sun’s magnetic fields cross over each other and reconnect. In the biggest events, this reconnection process can produce as much energy as a billion hydrogen bombs.
As the sun moves towards its next solar maximum and heats up, we are already seeing an increase in activity. The first X-class flare of the current solar cycle erupted on February 15, 2011, and there were more over the summer. On January 23, 2012, the sun unleashed an M8.7 flare accompanied by a CME and an SEP that created one of the strongest radiation storms since 2005.
If they’re directed at Earth, such flares and associated solar events can create long lasting radiation storms that can harm satellites, communications systems, and even ground-based technologies and power grids. NASA and NOAA — as well as the US Air Force Weather Agency (AFWA) and others — keep a constant watch on the sun to monitor for X-class flares and their associated magnetic storms. With advance warning many satellites, spacecraft and technologies can be protected from the worst effects.
‘Pink & Blue’ needs you!
What is ‘Pink & Blue’?
It’s a coffee-shop conversation…that became a scribble on a napkin, that became a PSA-style short film project, using whimsy to promote gender equality at playtime. The miniature universe of kids’ toys is the setting we’re choosing to power a simple idea: It’s healthy for girls and boys to share EQUAL access to imagination during their developmental years - and beyond.
Although strides are being made in our culture, girls and boys often receive unequal messages from the adults around them, regarding expectations for their attitudes about themselves. These subtle messages can be as simple as the toys we give as gifts. ‘Pink & Blue’ allows the toys themselves, in a light-hearted way, to show the effects of gender segregation - and the joy of integration.
Our story will take place in a live-action house with real children. After that, a cast of talented Hollywood actors is on board to voice our computer-animated toy characters, with an A-team of animation/visual effects artists set to bring those voices to life. With your help, we’ll fight inequality with laughter, while entertaining adults and children alike!
Writer/director James Parris has an extensive history in the world of animation and visual effects. http://imdb.to/aBjeZn
I love my solar landscape lights. I love the eco- friendly benefits, saving money on our electric bill, and that the underground wires don’t come up like they used to when we had electric. I also like the well lit curb appeal. If you are interested in Solar Landscape Lights, here are a few suggestions.
3 in 1 Transforming Solar Robot
3 in 1 Transforming Solar Robot Kit
The 3 in 1 Transforming Solar Robot Kit is fun to put together and a pleasure to use. Both kids and parents alike will enjoy assembling and playing with the completed robot. The finished robot will transform into three different configurations. It’s like having three toys in one. It also runs on solar power. This is not just any toy.
The 3 in 1 Transforming Solar Robot, once assembled from the kit, will charge and operate off of either the sun or from a halogen light. This convenient feature makes it possible to use the robot indoors as well as outdoors, no matter what the weather is like. This allows kids—and adults too—to have fun with the toy, come rain or come shine. Please note that the robot will not charge or run off of fluorescent or incandescent light.
This kit is a Dr. Toy Winner and is considered one of the Ten Best Educational Products and one of the 100 Best Children’s Products. This educational and engaging toy is recommended for ages ten and up. It contains small parts and so as a choking hazard is not recommended for children under three years old. This is an outstanding building kit for beginners that also helps kids learn how to operate a small motor using solar power.
The 3 in 1 Transforming Solar Robot Kit is a great gift for any occasion or for no occasion at all. Family members will be delighted and amazed by this innovative and versatile toy.
Batteryless Powered Solar Toys
Solar power can be considered an energy-efficient and inexpensive alternative to traditional energy sources such as electricity. With pressure mounting due to gradual depletion of non-renewable resources, people are increasingly looking towards renewable energy sources such as solar energy. The applications of solar energy are multifold, and this energy is used in many fields ranging from agriculture to electricity and even cooking. However, another novel use of solar energy involves solar toys. Solar energy is expected to play a major role in childrens future and is a fun way of introducing children to solar electricity kits. These kits make excellent gifts for occasions such as birthdays and Christmas and do not need batteries to run, unlike many other toys in the market. Some solar toys are also educational in nature. For example, some solar educational toys allow children to use solar cells to construct and customize a wide variety of machines. Some solar learning toys also allow children to use the small solar cells to create electricity and hence power simple mechanical objects, thus increasing their curiosity and eagerness to learn. There are even solar toys that allow the construction of miniature solar homes and even solar windmills ñ although it should be noted that windmills are powered by wind, as opposed to solar energy. Most of these solar toys are designed keeping in mind children of age 8 years and older. Parents should take note of the fact that some of the mechanical objects are very light and hence may be easily broken by children, hence supervision during playing time is recommended. These batteryless powered toys usually come equipped with educational manuals that shed further light on the concept of solar energy as well as photovoltaic cells. Some batteryless solar energy robot kits even come with lesson plans which can help increase a child`s grasp of science, enabling him/her to use it in school science projects. Another fun area where solar energy can be applied to toys is toy robots. Generally, toy robots come with solar receivers, which capture sunlight and come into life, doing simple tasks such as walking. These are usually very small and fragile and hence should be handled with care; therefore parents should monitor their children during playing times. One last note of advice is to leave solar toy robots out of high places which receive sunlight such as tables by the window, as these batteryless robots may start walking and fall off the edge.
