Dark Star Racing

So what's this solar racing all about eh?

Well, once you get past the fact that solar cars have wheels and go round race circuits, they are mainly an exercise in efficiency and power management. Of course, this isn't as extravagant as burning huge amounts of petrol and making a lot of noise, but it is certainly a unique challenge all of its own.

Solar cars have a few basic "building blocks" that make up the electrical system.

1) Solar panel
2) MPPT (maximum power point tracker)
3) Battery pack
4) Battery management system (BMS)
5) Motor controller (or "speed controller")
6) Electric motor (usually a brushless or BLDC)

The solar panels capture energy from the sun, and the MPPT makes sure that the panels are being used in the most efficient manner.

The power can then be used to charge the battery, or can be sent directly to the motor.

The BMS monitors the battery at all times, checking the voltages, temperatures and power readings to make sure that the battery is operating safely.

The motor controller takes the power from the battery and converts it to a supply that is used to power the motor. It also adjusts for speed, as you would expect.

Seems pretty straightforward, doesn't it?

Well, the key to all this (and the magic word) is EFFICIENCY. Every time you move power from one place to another, or change it from one type to another (say light to chemical, chemical to electrical, or electrical to kinetic) some of that power is wasted. The less power you waste, the more efficient your car will be.

If you want to go further and faster with less power, efficiency is the name of the game.

So those of you that have recently been invited to this page are probably wondering what it's all about (or not, whatever 😆 )

Well the short answer is, we're going solar car racing in 2026. The event we'll be taking part in is a 24 hour race at the Zolder circuit in Belgium, but this documentary shows the World Solar Car race across Australia. It's quite a good watch, and shows you all the top University teams from around the world that we'll be pitting our wits against. More to come....

Engineering the World’s Fastest Solar Race Cars Welcome to LIGHT SPEED! Join Derek Muller of Veritasium to meet the minds (and understand the physics!) behind the world’s most advanced solar vehicles. They...