For the fourth time in the University of Michigan Solar Car Team’s history, the students placed third in a biennial 1,880-mile race across Australia.

The U-M car Infinium crossed the finish line in Adelaide on the evening of Oct. 28, 2009, to complete the Global Green Challenge, formerly known as the World Solar Challenge, after five days of competing.

Tokai University of Japan won the race. Michigan fought hard with four-time champion team Nuon of the Netherlands for second place. On day four, the teams leap-frogged six times. Infinium received a 10-minute penalty when the students had to push it up a tough hill toward the end of the race. That solidified Nuon’s lead, according to the team’s blog.

This year marks the 20th anniversary for the Solar Car Team.  Watch a video about the team preparing for this race.

With more than 100 members, Solar Car is one of the largest student organizations on campus, including students from the College of Engineering, the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, the Ross School of Business, the School of Art & Design, and the School of Education.

This year, major sponsors include Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp., Delta Air Lines, and the U-M College of Engineering.