Yesterday I volunteered at the Junior Solar Sprint, an event organized by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association. Teams of junior high school students came from as far as New Jersey and Delaware to compete in the event, which pits their custom-designed solar mini-cars against each other in a variety of categories.
The idea behind the event is that each team receives a standard solar car kit about the size of a radio controlled car or a toy car. I've gathered that beyond some basic guidelines and restrictions, teams may then customize to their content. Their cars are raced against each other in the main "speed" category, but there are also other categories like technical ingenuity or creativity. Certainly, there was a wide variety of interesting and cute car designs, as you can see in the photo gallery below.
It was an interesting event to take part in, and encouraging to see kids trying their hardest in a subject which is probably considered quite geeky. I hope that the current "greening" trend continues to gain public interest and support!
Picture gallery here:
