A group of scientists are taking a solar-powered Tesla for a 15000 km long road trip

• The Charge Around Australia will power a Tesla car with printed plastic solar panels.
• The epic journey will complete 15,000 km.
• According to the company, with this test run, they want to revolutionize solar technology used in remote locations.

Looking to push boundaries, a group of Australian scientists are testing printed solar panels which they will be using to power a Tesla on a 15,000 km road trip. The Australian company, Charge Around Australia (CAA) will power a Tesla electric car with the help of 18 printed plastic solar panels, each 18 meters long. The panels will roll out beside the vehicle to soak up sunlight for a charge.

This test run is announced days before Earth day. It will begin in September and scientists are hoping people will think about steps to help avert climate change.

The inventor of printed solar panels, Paul Dastoor said, “the team will be testing not only the endurance of the panels but their true potential for other applications.” He also added, “this is actually an ideal testbed to give us information about how we would go about using and powering technology in other remote locations, for example, in space”.

This is one big giant step to fight pollution and it will be interesting to see if this technology is going to be used by different carmakers or not.

What are printed solar panels?
The printed solar panels are lightweight and laminated in PET plastic that cost around $10 (₹764) per square metre. These panels are made on a commercial printer which is originally used for printing wine labels. The test run will include 84 days of journey, the team plans to visit 70 schools to give a taste of future technology.

At last, Dastoor said, “showing how our innovative technology is now combining with his developments to develop new solutions for the planet”.

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