Solar Taxi Making a Splash in Bali
by Andrew Posner, Providence, Rhode Island on 12.10.07
Back in July we covered the story of Swiss teacher Louis Palmer, whose aim is to drive around the world in a 'solar taxi' powered by 64 square feet of solar panels and a battery pack. Sound half-baked? Well, since his departure on July 3rd, Palmer has travelled by land and sea through 17 countries, and is now parked in front of the registration tent at the Climate Change Conference in Bali. There, he has taken delegations from several countries, including Uganda and Brazil, for a ride.
The car, which was built over three years thanks to help from several universities and over a dozen Swiss companies, can travel 62 miles a day. Solar panels in Switzerland offset the emissions from cloudy days when the team is forced to plug into the grid. The ultimate goal is to demonstrate that there are solutions to global warming. Said Palmer, "It's the first time in history that a car is driving around the world without a single drop of petrol."
Via: ::Yahoo Green and ::SolarTaxi.com
See Also: ::First Muscle Powered Circumnavigation Completed and ::Bicycling Around the World: An Eco-Context for America
No way would I take a solar panel out into traffic! Safe high up on a pole above the garage makes more sense, and then not limited on the size.
62 miles a day is pretty limited for a taxi, but totally realistic for most daily driving.
Actually a camera man called Erik Schmitt has been accompanying The solartaxi on his trip through India, (and now Bali) has has posted many videos of the trip. You can watch them at Club of Pioneers here
http://www.clubofpioneers.com/blog/blog-from-erik-schmitt/28/
You can also send him questions and hear about it "from the horses mouth" .