SSETI Express (Student Space Exploration & Technology Initiative) is a small spacecraft, similar in size and shape to a washing machine.

Other mission objectives include the acquisition of Earth images by a commercial off-the-shelf digital camera and the operation of a message transmission service using an amateur radio frequency.

The on-board camera (CAM) is based on a colour complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensor and an instrument control unit.

This sub-system processes commands related to the propulsion system, controls the thruster valves and performs data acquisition from the various thermistors and pressure transducers.

The MIAS team also assumed Flight Dynamics after the launch, which mainly confronted the current trajectory of the satellite with the expected one, and suggested corrections, in case these two differed too much.

It serves a dual function providing both high-speed mission data downlink at 38400 bit/s and also, in combination with the UHF system, a single-channel audio transponder.

The primary load-bearing spacecraft structure (STRU) consists of aluminium honeycomb panels configured in a similar way to the game known as tic-tac-toe or noughts and crosses.

The secondary structure consists of 1 mm aluminium outer lateral panels, serving as mounting surfaces for the solar cells, Sun sensors and other lightweight equipment.

The Ultra high frequency (UHF) unit contains a radio and a terminal node controller (TNC) and is the spacecraft's primary communications system.

[6] The launch itself was successful but, unfortunately, the mission only lasted 12.5 hours as the solar array was unable to charge the batteries, due to a malfunction in the Electrical Power Subsystem.