Fergie's Tech Blog

First student satellite successfully lifts off

Via The BBC.

The first satellite built entirely by European students has launched from Plesetsk in northern Russia.

The 52 kg micro-satellite, Sseti Express, was designed and built by 100 students from 10 universities in nine countries.

It blasted off aboard a Russian Cosmos 3M rocket in the first launch from the cosmodrome since the loss of Europe's ice mission, Cryosat.

Sseti Express shared a ride with satellites for China, Iran and the UK.

Graham Shirville, who masterminded the telecommunications side of the project, said it was essentially a demonstration payload.

"It's the first European-built satellite that has been built largely by using the Internet as communication between the teams," he said.

posted by Fergie @ 10/27/2005 06:46:00 AM