Three years ago, SolarCar at Virginia Tech was founded with the ambitious goal of introducing Virginia Tech students to the potential of solar energy through solar racing. On July 20, the team completed their first competition, the Formula Sun Grand Prix, with their first car, the "Sun Gobbler."

The Sun Gobbler passed all pre-race scrutineering checks, attaining a green status that earned them a spot on the track. They completed 49 official laps, covering a total distance of 163.8 miles, and secured 12th place out of the 24 teams in the Single Occupancy Vehicle (SOV) category—outperforming many veteran teams.

Team support has come in many forms, with particular contributions from Scott Dunning, Luke Lester, Azim Eskandarian (now Dean at VCU), and Brian Lattimer. Adviser Saied Taheri provided direct guidance in design and team development, and input for key decisions through the process came from Behzad Hamedi and Engineering Education Professor Marie Paretti.

Solar car team members at competition. (front row, from left) Kevin Martin, Nick Whitney, Eashan Gupta, Will Ewald, Kiran Marques, Ben Pienkowski, Eva Mehta. (Back row, from left) Joshua Howard, Agilan Anand, Sai Balusu, Jake Littlefield, George Allotey, Jack Michaud. Additional members at competition but not pictured: Kurt Peng, Jacob Richardson. Photo courtesy of Eashan Gupta.
Solar car team members at competition. (front row, from left) Kevin Martin, Nick Whitney, Eashan Gupta, Will Ewald, Kiran Marques, Ben Pienkowski, Eva Mehta. (Back row, from left) Joshua Howard, Agilan Anand, Sai Balusu, Jake Littlefield, George Allotey, Jack Michaud. Additional members at competition but not pictured: Kurt Peng, Jacob Richardson. Photo courtesy of Eashan Gupta.