Figure 1 - Team Lux 1997 Group Photo with Lux Aeterna
Solar car racing has been part of Yale Engineering for more than a decade. During that time, over one hundred students have enriched their undergraduate experience as members of Team Lux. By some measures, it has been a very successful program, with the team's first car placing 9th in Sunrayce 97, their second car placing 15th in Sunrayce 99, and their fourth car placing 7th in the 2004 Greek Phaethon. However, Team Lux was unable to complete their third car in time for the 2001 race and previously undiscovered problems prevented their fourth car from qualifying for the 2003 race. Upgrades to the fourth car allowed it to race in Greece, but technical difficulties again prevented it from competing in 2005. It has been six years since Yale has raced in North America. Even with the lack of recent race success, many former members still cite Team Lux as the best part of their time at Yale. Winning races has never been the principal purpose of this collegiate engineering project, as it offers leadership and educational opportunities beyond those of the classroom. Unfortunately, Team Lux has been strained by steadily declining membership, and fewer students now benefit from the experience.
Despite the large scale of the Team Lux undertaking and the expenses involved, there has been little documentation of the team's effort and no overall analysis of the program. Through the author's experience as a member of Team Lux[1] and personal archives of Team Lux's electronic communication, a comprehensive picture of Team Lux has been assembled. Additionally, after compiling past rosters, a survey was sent to all Team Lux alumni to learn their thoughts on the program. This paper provides introductions to the racing and design elements of a solar car,[2] a close examination of the technical details of each of Yale's solar cars, and a brief history of Team Lux. Through reconstructing the history of Team Lux and analyzing the project, it is possible to draw conclusions about the performance of the program, its benefits, and how it can be enhanced in the future.
[1] The author joined Team Lux at the beginning of his freshman year in September 1997 and was heavily involved with the project through racing in Sunrayce 99. For the next several years, he was intermittently involved with Team Lux when in New Haven,and then rejoined the team in January 2003, participating in the unsuccessful attempt to race in the American Solar Challenge 2003.
[2] This discussion assumes only a basic knowledge of physics and automotive concepts and is intended to allow the reader previously unfamiliar with solar racing to understand the choices Team Lux made, rather than provide a comprehensive guide to building a solar car. Several excellent texts on that subject are cited in the references.
