Description
About Us
We are Team AgniRath, the solar car racing team at the Centre for Innovation, IIT Madras. Driven by a vision to win the World Solar Challenge with a fully indigenous solar car, the team was founded in 2021 by six students inspired by a YouTube documentary on the World Solar Challenge. Our team has now grown to 48 undergraduates from various departments at IIT Madras brought together by our shared passion for solar car racing.
World Solar Challenge
The World Solar Challenge is the world’s greatest innovation and engineering challenge, where cars must cover 3,000 km from Darwin to Adelaide within 5 days, solely on solar energy. The harsh conditions of the Australian Outback—high temperatures, unpredictable weather, heavy crosswinds, and wildlife—challenge teams to build highly efficient solar cars.
Our First Achievement- Participating in World Solar Challenge 2023 with Aarush
Building our first solar car- Aarush, a 5m long solar-powered car that cruises at an average speed of 75km/hr was a rollercoaster ride for us. As pioneers in solar car racing in India, we constructed the entire body ourselves with a glass fiber aeroshell and carbon fiber monocoque chassis, achieving aerodynamic efficiency with a drag coefficient of 0.12. One of our unique features includes in-house-manufactured flexible solar modules with 21% efficiency and a custom-designed patented heat sink, making Aarush a highly energy-efficient car that runs on less power than a hairdryer!
We took our first step toward our goal by participating in the World Solar Challenge’23. Despite a last-minute technical failure during scrutineering that prevented us from officially racing, participating in the challenge for the first time and competing against 40 international teams with 20+ years of experience was an invaluable learning experience. This experience fueled our motivation to return stronger for the next challenge.
Our Next Step- World Solar Challenge 2025
Our next goal is the World Solar Challenge 2025, where we aim to build our next car with several future implementations, including:
1. Developing our own Battery Management System
2. Using carbon fiber to build the aeroshell reducing the weight of the car by 40%
3. Manufacturing solar modules with an efficiency of 24%
4. Implementing data-driven optimization models for race strategy and multi-body simulations
Support Our Journey to the World Solar Challenge 2025
With our design nearly complete, we need funds to procure the necessary components and raw materials to start manufacturing. The challenge has now been preponed from October to August’25, with new regulations increasing the solar array area and decreasing battery storage capacity, making it more challenging. Your support will help us build a highly efficient solar car to win the World Solar Challenge’25. Your support will help us push the boundaries of innovation and build technology that will revolutionize the future of sustainable mobility in India. Join us in our journey to represent India in the World Solar Challenge 2025!
A breakdown of how funds will be used for manufacturing the car can be found here.
To learn more about us, please visit here.
We are Team AgniRath, the solar car racing team at the Centre for Innovation, IIT Madras. Driven by a vision to win the World Solar Challenge with a fully indigenous solar car, the team was founded in 2021 by six students inspired by a YouTube documentary on the World Solar Challenge. Our team has now grown to 48 undergraduates from various departments at IIT Madras brought together by our shared passion for solar car racing.
World Solar Challenge
The World Solar Challenge is the world’s greatest innovation and engineering challenge, where cars must cover 3,000 km from Darwin to Adelaide within 5 days, solely on solar energy. The harsh conditions of the Australian Outback—high temperatures, unpredictable weather, heavy crosswinds, and wildlife—challenge teams to build highly efficient solar cars.
Our First Achievement- Participating in World Solar Challenge 2023 with Aarush
Building our first solar car- Aarush, a 5m long solar-powered car that cruises at an average speed of 75km/hr was a rollercoaster ride for us. As pioneers in solar car racing in India, we constructed the entire body ourselves with a glass fiber aeroshell and carbon fiber monocoque chassis, achieving aerodynamic efficiency with a drag coefficient of 0.12. One of our unique features includes in-house-manufactured flexible solar modules with 21% efficiency and a custom-designed patented heat sink, making Aarush a highly energy-efficient car that runs on less power than a hairdryer!
We took our first step toward our goal by participating in the World Solar Challenge’23. Despite a last-minute technical failure during scrutineering that prevented us from officially racing, participating in the challenge for the first time and competing against 40 international teams with 20+ years of experience was an invaluable learning experience. This experience fueled our motivation to return stronger for the next challenge.
Our Next Step- World Solar Challenge 2025
Our next goal is the World Solar Challenge 2025, where we aim to build our next car with several future implementations, including:
1. Developing our own Battery Management System
2. Using carbon fiber to build the aeroshell reducing the weight of the car by 40%
3. Manufacturing solar modules with an efficiency of 24%
4. Implementing data-driven optimization models for race strategy and multi-body simulations
Support Our Journey to the World Solar Challenge 2025
With our design nearly complete, we need funds to procure the necessary components and raw materials to start manufacturing. The challenge has now been preponed from October to August’25, with new regulations increasing the solar array area and decreasing battery storage capacity, making it more challenging. Your support will help us build a highly efficient solar car to win the World Solar Challenge’25. Your support will help us push the boundaries of innovation and build technology that will revolutionize the future of sustainable mobility in India. Join us in our journey to represent India in the World Solar Challenge 2025!
A breakdown of how funds will be used for manufacturing the car can be found here.
To learn more about us, please visit here.
Team Agnirath 2024
- No.of Donors : 3
