The SSETI Express, the first spacecraft to be designed and built solely by European students, has been shipped to Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia, the European Space Agency (ESA) announced July 13.

Students from 10 universities in nine countries built the spacecraft across Europe.

SSETI, scheduled for launch Aug. 25 by a Cosmos 3M rocket, will carry three picosatellites that will be deployed on orbit. The spacecraft also will capture imagery of Earth, function as a radio transponder for the global amateur radio community and act as a test bed and technology demonstrator for future student-built satellites.