Solar panel testing

It was one of those rare bright Monday mornings where the intense sunlight was shining down on our south-facing Mountbatten roof garden. We decided to use this space as our solar panel test facility for the day.

The 215W SunPower panels were specifically chosen for their superior power to weight ratio and adequate efficiency. They were connected directly to a neat-looking MPPT, which was wired to a 12V Varta battery.

The selected MPPT has a set of indication LEDs that correspond to its charging status. Once the panel packaging was removed and the sunlight was exposed, the appropriate LEDs flashed on indicating that the panel was successfully charging the battery.

For the remainder of the morning we took some voltage and current readings in order to identify the charging characteristics of the power charging system. These measurements will be later used in optimising the electrical performance for the endurance race.