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National scene: Students design solar-powered racing car
The Research and Technology and Higher Education Ministry launched on Monday the Widya Wahana V solar car, designed by students of the 10 November Institute of Technology in Surabaya (ITS)
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he Research and Technology and Higher Education Ministry launched on Monday the Widya Wahana V solar car, designed by students of the 10 November Institute of Technology in Surabaya (ITS).
The solar car left Jakarta on Monday on a maiden four-day trip to Bali before making a 3,000-kilometer road trip from Darwin, Northern Territory, to Adelaide, South Australia, in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge competition from Oct. 18 to 25.
'This car is proof that Indonesian youth are able to compete on the world stage,' Research and Technology and Higher Education Minister Muhammad Nasir said Monday during the launch.
Project advisor Nur Yuniarto, who is a mechanical engineering professor at ITS, said the car ran on one battery and had a backup battery, each with a 16 kilowatt capacity. The car can travel 700 kilometers on a fully charged battery and has a maximum speed of 100 km per hour.
The car's body is made of lightweight fiberglass and has a streamlined design that eases the flow of wind to help it go faster.
The research and making of the car took a year and cost at least Rp 3 billion (US$230,000) and was sponsored by the government, ITS students, alumni and private automotive companies.
The first version of Widya Wahana was made in 1985 followed by versions in 1986, 1987 and 2013. This year's version is the first to have two seats. The last one had only a driver's seat.
