Part 1—surveying the stuart highway with GPS for the 1996 world solar challenge

Abstract

Abstract In preparation for the forthcoming World Solar Challenge (WSC), a GPS survey was carried out to precisely map the Stuart Highway. The WSC is the world’s premier solar car race. It is held every three years, along the Stuart Highway from Darwin to Adelaide. This year's race commences on the 27th October and will feature over 50 teams, including one from The University of New South Wales (UNSW). The UNSW solar car entry, called Sunswift, Is a student project supported by the Faculty of Engineering. The School of Geomatic Engineering undertook to determine the vertical road profile of the Stuart Highway, and to package the data in such a way as to help the team to plan race strategy. This project will be described in two parts. Part 1, published here, gives a general outline of the project, and the GPS field procedures and techniques used in the kinematic survey of the Stuart Highway. Part 2 will be published after the WSC and, will describe the GPS data processing as well as the manner in which...