Rector acknowledged the Solaride team

On 20 October, Rector of the University of Tartu, Toomas Asser, recognised the Solaride team, which had recently achieved second place in the world championships in Australia.

Solaride III Enefit, the car built with the involvement of University of Tartu students, took part in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in Australia, where it had to cover a distance of more than 3,000 kilometres.

Rector Toomas Asser emphasised that ideas and experiences arising from the collaboration of several universities and companies are something the University of Tartu wishes to share with all its students. “If you remember, the Solaride idea came from Professor Alvo Aabloo from the UT Institute of Technology, and the realisation of his vision shows how an outstanding initiative from a small nation can reach the world and be far ahead of others,” said the rector.

He also noted that cooperation across universities and disciplines is of great value. “We recognise you for working together and purposefully towards your goal and achieving such a high position,” said Rector Asser.

The team shared the story of building their third solar car and their impressions of the competition with those interested. “It was challenging in Australia, but not even tornadoes could stop us, and we missed first place by just four minutes,” said Armin Mere, the Solaride Electronics team lead.

Solaride, launched in 2020, is an interdisciplinary education and collaboration project focusing on developing future talent and promoting technology education. As a result of the joint efforts of Solaride members, mentors, Estonian universities, and private and public-sector institutions, the team has already built the first three solar cars in the Baltic countries.

The Solaride car was built over a period of eighteen months by more than 30 engineers from the University of Tartu and elsewhere. Also, the Marketing, People Operations, Finance, Training and Development teams, along with mentors and supporters, contributed to the completion of the solar car.