Our vision and mission
JU Solar Team wants to be a part of the development of the future fueled by the biggest renewable source of nature: THE SUN
As we challenge other universities in the competition we also challenge ourselves and push the sustainable technology of tomorrow. We stand by our original 3 keywords:
Sustainability, Innovation, and Stronger Together!
Our journey
2010
Magnus visits Nuna in the Netherlands
In the early 2000s Magnus had an idea about the World Solar Challenge (WSC) and started the formation of the first project with Dag.
2011
Dag & Mangus participated in the world solar challenge as observers
Oskar Prytz was an important part of the first project
* Solar car pioneers at JU: Magnus, Dag & Oskar Prytz
2012
The first JU Solar Team is formed
The team worked day and night trying to figure out how to make the best car for the competition.
2013
JU Solar Team participated in the World Solar Challenge with our first car, Magic
The first car was one of its kind with paper-thin margins and state of the art aerodynamics. The ambitious team was fighting for the top placements until an unforeseen gust took control of the lightweight car and the team unfortunately had to withdraw in the last stage.
2015
The new team participated with the new car, Solbritt
Learning from past experiences, the new team aimed to build a more stable car for the WSC 2015. This resulted in the car, Solbritt, finishing the race in 15th place out of 30 contestants. This was the first Nordic car to ever successfully finish the challenge 🎉
2017
JU Solar Team places 8th in the World Solar Challenge with Solveig!
New regulations lowered the solar panel by 33% which opened up new possibilities that changed the way we thought about designing cars for the race. From this a new concept was developed with lower aerodynamic drag and higher durability in tough conditions. In Australia this was proven to be correct when the car moved forward with ease through the tough rainy and windy weather conditions. The project was recognized in Sweden for beating some of the top universities in the world.
2019
Axelent placed 10th in the World Solar Challenge
Axelent Group joined as main partner and supports the team through its journey that builds our most developed car to this day. Unfortunately days before the start of WSC '19, the car was hit by an unanticipated object that took out half of the solar energy input which haunted the team for the whole race. Without this misshapen, the team could have finished in the top 3.
2020
The new team changed the project’s identity and developed new technology
Due to covid-19 the team had to change its focus to other smaller projects that would support the next team to compete in the WSC 2023.
2021
Magnus and Dag received the Honorary medal from JU
The University and city of Jönköping recognizes the importance of the project and the culture it has created since its start in 2010.
* Pictures from the traditional Swedish youth solar race
2023
JU placed 7th in the World Solar Challenge
The team presented the new car, Axelight with the innovative "droplet" design and other innovative features.
The team faced and overcame some challenges on their way across the Australian outback, placing 7th, beating their record.
2024
The new team will improve Axelight
A new team, with the help of mentors, is looking to optimize the previous concept. New regulations will even out the playing field to their advantage.