Stella Terra Crosses Morocco on Batteries

The Solar Team at Eindhoven University of Technology in Netherlands concedes that cars may be part of the problem. However, the students insist vehicles can also be part of the solution in a sustainable world, where ‘Sun Powers Life’. Their proof-of-concept Stella Terra off-road solar vehicle could reach out to isolated communities, where electric-grid-power and gasoline-filling-stations are rarities. And assist with emergency aid and deliveries too, according to Rebecca Cairns and Mark Tutton writing for CNN Travel.

Your Future Is Our Challenge, Says Stella Terra Team

Stella Terra translates to Star of Earth, or Earth’s Star according to our limited understanding of the Latin language. The innovative little vehicle uses its gently-sloping ‘fastback’ roof to support an array of solar panels. These enable it to traverse fairly long distances on the power of its solar battery.

The prototype vehicle recently completed a 620-mile journey across Morocco, departing from the coast and reaching the Sahara desert. “Morocco has a huge variety of landscapes and different surfaces in quite a short distance,” events manager Thieme Bosman explains. They tested the vehicle “on every type of surface that a car like this could encounter.”

More Technical Information About This Plucky Car

The prototype car apparently meets all the norms entitling it to use public roads. Its performance standards (while not charging on solar) according to CNN Travel include:

A 440-mile battery driving range on conventional roads.
Although this reduces to 340 miles when driving off-road.
Those driving ranges reduce by 50 miles in cloudy conditions.

Thieme Bosman adds three more interesting snippets of information. Stella Terra turned out to be a third-more efficient than the team expected. Its lightweight design placed less stress on its suspension, and is was less likely to get stuck in rough terrain.

Paint and Panel provided another fascinating snippet we would like to share. A fire protection thermal coating protected the lithium-ion battery from ambient heat. This improved its performance, while shielding the occupants in the event of a thermal runaway fire. Bravo, Eindhoven Students. We salute you all!