Members of Iowa State University's Team PrISUm were working on their solar car's battery system on the eve of the May 31-June 5 Formula Sun Grand Prix at the Motorsport Ranch in Cresson, Texas. The team had spent two weeks repairing and upgrading the car's battery pack and brakes.

Then a nearby lightning strike took out the car's battery protection system and that eventually destroyed a circuit board.

The strike kept the team off the track for more than half of the three-day competition, but they did finally get Sol Invictus, its $400,000, 1,400-watt solar car, out for some racing. And they managed to finish 7th out of nine teams in the endurance test.

A team from the University of Minnesota, with their car Centaurus, won by completing 487 laps, 94 more than the second-place team from the University of Kentucky.