Arizona State University plans to launch a small, NASA-funded research satellite from the International Space Station on Wednesday.
ASU rocketed the CubeSat to the ISS aboard a Northrop Grumman Antares rocket in November.
Known as Phoenix, the bread-loaf-sized craft will use an off-the-shelf infrared camera to study the urban heat island in seven U.S. cities, including Phoenix.
Urban heat islands occur when human activities, building materials and other urban factors make cities warmer than their surroundings.
CubeSats conform to a modular design that lets them launch from a uniform chute or module.
About 100 undergraduate students worked on Phoenix, which will orbit the Earth for up to two years, enough time to capture data during all four seasons.
The team will make Phoenix's observations publicly available on its website phxcubesat.asu.edu.