Genre-jumping Fulbright scholar takes a novel path

Abstract image of gold miners on a seemingly snowy evening.

Aspiring scientist Ariel Djanikian, MFA ’04, read the writing on the lab wall when she found herself prioritizing creative writing over her latest experiment. Her fascinating and often tragic family history informs a recurring theme in both of her novels: the obliteration of one group of people for the convenience of another.

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Sun, sun, sun, here it comes

Powered by the Australian sun, the University of Michigan Solar Car Team’s Astrum was the fourth challenger-class car to cross the finish line in the 2023 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. The five-day race (Oct. 22-26) spanned 1,800 miles from Darwin on the coast of Australia’s Northern Territory to Adelaide in the south. Astrum is the 17th car made by the Michigan Solar Car Team since its founding in 1989. (Images and text are by Michigan Engineering’s Levi Hutmacher and Derek Smith, respectively.)

  • Let’s get small

    Ian Bakker, team driver and high-voltage engineer, prepares to depart the U-M team’s camp in Ti Tree, Australia, on Day Three of racing. The team had been playing catch-up since starting in 32nd place on Day One. Yes, 32nd place. Bakker is an electrical engineering undergraduate student in the College of Engineering.

    Man in helmet and dark glasses sits in one-person cockpit of solar car, with open hatch.

  • The underdog

    The team had a rocky start to the race, literally at the back of the pack. Electrical issues had shut Astrum down in the middle of the speed test that determines the racers’ order at the starting line. The car that finishes this “hot lap” in the shortest time starts the main event first. Because the U-M team couldn’t finish its lap, it started behind 31 other cars.

    Fans along the sidelines of the Solar Car racetrack.

  • Back in the game

    When the team arrived at the control stop in Dunmara at the end of the first day, they had rocketed into sixth place. “We could not afford to mope around and just let stuff happen to us,” says Leo Intelisano, a sophomore majoring in computer engineering and one of the team’s microsystems engineers. Here, Astrum, travels down the Stuart Highway south of Alice Springs, Australia.
    Astrum advances along a road in the Australian outback. The sand surrounding the gray road is a red-brown color. Astrum is shaped like a yellow bullet. A round, white hood covers the driver's seat. A maroon chase car with an antenna on its hood follows Astrum.

  • Great minds

    By the end of day three, Michigan was just under 50 miles behind the third-place team, Brunel. But Astrum’s battery was only 11 percent full, and the weather forecast called for high winds and cloudy skies. To compensate, the team planned to move slowly during the sunny part of the day to refuel. Then when the clouds came in, they would squeeze all the juice they could get out of the battery

    Fourteen members of the U-M race crew stand together in a line while linking arms. Their backs are facing the viewer. Each team member is wearing a neon green vest with reflective safety markings. In front of the crew is the solar car, Astrum, which has a yellow body. The top panel of the car is opened so that the solar panels are facing the sun. With the panel opened, the inside of the car's black cockpit is visible.

  • Pitstop

    Luckily, Astrum’s strategists spent the entire year preparing for the competition by studying passing situations with mathematical models. As a result, the team was well-equipped to adjust its speed and overtake car after car as the race progressed.

     

    : A driver is lifting Astrum's round, white hood so that he can lower himself into the driver's seat. He is wearing a helmet with an attached microphone and sunglasses. Astrum's body is yellow and bullet shaped and is covered in logos from the team's various sponsors.

  • Speedy

    Astrum took off at some of the fastest speeds in the 2023 competition — between 53 and 62 mph. “Placing fourth in the world is fantastic,” said Will Jones, the team’s race manager and a senior in mechanical engineering. “This team worked so hard and it’s so validating to finish where we did.” Here, Astrum zooms along the Stuart Highway south of Erldunda, Australia. 

    Astrum is moving along a black-paved, Australian road. Astrum is shaped like a yellow bullet with a white cockpit.

  • Strong finish

    The U-M students’ resilience didn’t go unnoticed. “Against so many odds, the 2023 team looked the possibility of failure in the face and pushed onward,” wrote alum Andrew Warner on LinkedIn. Warner was on the U-M Solar Car Team in 1993 and is now the president of Wartech Engineering. “This is an experience that will likely shape how they respond to obstacles in the future, in life, and in business.”
    The Michigan solar car team stands behind their yellow car, Astrum, at the ceremonial finish line in Adelaide, Australia. Tall buildings are visible in the background, and a red banner reads "Adelaide Australia" over the. The entire team is wearing maize and blue and are holding up the American flag.