Aurora Solar Car

The Aurora Vehicle Association is a group of volunteers who are dedicated to achieving and demonstrating extreme efficiency in transport. Aurora was started in 1980 by building high-fuel-efficiency petrol-powered vehicles. Between 1983 and 1985 Aurora held the world record for fuel economy at 1808 km per litre (5107 miles per imperial gallon). In 1987, when Hans Tholstrup devised the first trans-Australian World Solar Challenge, Aurora turned to solar car development and has been a contestant in every World Solar Challenge and has achieved 1 win, 4 second places, 1 third place, 1 fifth place, 1 sixth place and 1 crash.

Aurora Vehicle Association Inc.
TypeIncorporated
IndustrySolar Cars
Founded1980
HeadquartersMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Key people
Andris Samsons(Chairman)
WebsiteAurora Solar Car Website

Aurora is a non-profit group which is sustained by corporate sponsorship from companies such as CSIRO, Mazda and Sumitomo (amongst many others).

At various points in its history, Aurora has also been associated with some of Australia's leading universities such as UNSW, University of Technology, Sydney, University of Melbourne and RMIT.

Cars

Aurora have constructed several solar-powered cars and are now in their 4th generation of car designs.

Ford Model "S" - 1987

Ford Model 'S'
Specifications
Overall length5.5 meters
Overall width2.0 meters
Weight250 kg
Top speed100 km/h
Drag coefficient0.26
Solar Panel1400 watts

Christine - 1990

Christine
Specifications
Overall length3.1 meters
Overall width1.6 meters
Weight180 kg
Top speed112 km/h
Drag coefficientCd 0.27
Solar Panel1100 watts

Aurora Q1 - 1993

Aurora Q1
Specifications
Overall length4.41 meters
Overall width2.0 meters
Weight220 kg
Top speed112 km/h
Drag coefficientCd 0.095 with race array, 0.08 with prototype smooth array.
Solar Panel1300 watts

Southern Aurora - 2000

Southern Aurora
Specifications
Overall length4.58 meters
Overall width2 meters
Weight215 kg
Top speed122 km/h
Drag coefficient
Solar Panel1500 watts

Aurora 101 - 1996

Aurora 101 4th Generation
Specifications
Overall length4.1 meters
Overall width1.8 meters
Weight130 kg
Top speed152 km/h
Drag coefficientCd 0.08
Solar Panel1250 watts

The current flagship is known as Aurora Evolution (Previously Aurora 101). The car weighs 120 kg without batteries or a driver and has attained speeds of 155 km/h. It is built around a triangular carbon fibre frame (with a circular cross section) with a single driven front wheel and two rear wheels. The car's body is attached to the frame at three points through springs and shock absorbers.

The car is extremely aerodynamic, with a drag coefficient of 0.1 and a frontal area of 0.76 square metres. The motor, which was developed as a joint effort between CSIRO, the University of Technology, Sydney and Aurora, weighs 15 kg and has a continuous operating power of 1.8 kW.

The car's power comes from its solar array, which covers a majority of the upper half of its body. There is a total of 5.98 square metres of silicon solar cells, which originally provided up to 1250 W but now provides closer to 1200 W due to degradation. In full racing trim (as per the World Solar Challenge rules) the car weighs 240 kg with its batteries and driver.

Aurora 101 finished second in the 2003 WSC race[1]

Aurora 101 finished 3rd in the 2007 WSC race.[2]

  • Fastest lap at Hidden Valley Racetrack, Darwin Average speed 91.83 km/h.
  • Fastest lap at Suzuka Racetrack Average speed 93.08 km/h.
  • Distance covered in 24 hours non-stop record 1590 km.

World Records

YearRecord
1983Shell Mileage Marathon. 2,948 mpg
1984Shell Mileage Marathon. 3,133 mpg
1985Shell Mileage Marathon. 5,107 mpg
1994Trans-Continental Solar Challenge. Perth to Sydney, 4,000 km, 8.5 days
1998Citipower SunRace. Adelaide to Sydney. 2,080 km. Average 100.9 km/h over 100 km
2000Sydney to Melbourne Day Record: 877 km
200213,054 km in 24 days - Long distance solar car journey.
2002780 km Longest day distance on solar energy
2002111.2 km/h Highest on-road average speed for 100 km
200216,660 km (since 1993) Longest distance solar car driver
2002131.0 km/h for 100 miles (est. 1994 Biel 121.6 km/h)
2002131.5 km/h for One Hour (est. 1994 Biel 123.0 km/h)
2002132.1 km/h for 100 km (est. 1994 Biel 124.3 km/h)
200286.2 km/h on solar energy alone (est. 1994 Biel 82.6 km/h)
20041255 km in 24 hours
20051701 km in 24 hours
2007World record distance for a battery powered car, in 'Christine', 811 km at 53.05 km/hr

Aurora in WSC

Event YearPlacingAverage SpeedQualification Grid Position
19872nd Place44.48 km/h4
19906th Place, 1st in Class (Lead Acid)50.20 km/h13
19935th Place70.08 km/h17
1996Did not finish[3]-9
19991st Place[4]72.96 km/h7
20012nd Place90.26 km/h5
20032nd Place91.90 km/h1
20052nd Place92.03 km/h1
20073rd Overall, 1st in Class85.00 km/h3
20096th Place70.82 km/h1

References

  1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3203941.stm
  2. http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/dutch-win-solar-car-race/2007/10/25/1192941227965.html,
  3. SAE Australasia, September / October 1999, Volume 59, Number 5, Page 15
  4. Australian Energy News, Issue 14, Dec 1999, Page 39
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