DARMSTADT, Germany (Reuters) -- Students from more than 20 universities across Europe have designed, built and on Thursday launched their own satellite into space.The SSETI Express satellite is about the size of a standard washing machine and was shot into space by a Russian launcher from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia, the European Space Agency said.If the satellite settles into a successful orbit around the earth, it will encircle the planet from pole to pole at a height of around 505 km (314 miles).The SSETI Express took a year and a half to build. Some 200 university students from more than 20 universities in 12 countries participated in the project.Copyright 2005 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.