This solar-powered ‘ambulance’ has a range of up to 444 miles

A team of 23 students at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands has built Stella Juva, a solar-powered mobile clinic they call the world's first solar ambulance. Rather than rushing patients to a hospital, it brings medical care to them, letting healthcare workers run blood tests, screen for tuberculosis and malaria, give vaccines, and do pregnancy ultrasounds in remote areas with little fuel, electricity, or usable roads.

Rooftop solar panels power both the vehicle and its medical equipment, and the team estimates it can travel up to 715 kilometers (444 miles) on a sunny day, though that range hasn't been tested in real conditions yet. The panels use AIKO's All Back Contact solar cells, a design that puts the wiring on the back of each cell to capture more light and hold up better in heat, useful for a vehicle meant for hot climates. The battery is coated with an epoxy from PPG meant to slow the spread of heat and fire if a cell overheats; PPG also gave the project a $46,250 grant.

This isn't a product for homeowners to buy or install. It's a research and humanitarian project, and the real test comes in August, when the team drives Stella Juva across Kenya and has healthcare workers simulate patient care, including tuberculosis treatment, at remote sites to see how it holds up outside the lab.