IPN to conduct fourth flight to the stratosphere with NASA.

Zenaida Alzaga

The Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN) is preparing for the fourth FY23-FTS mission aboard the EMIDSS-4 module (Experimental Module for the Iterative Design for Satellite Subsystems version 4) to the stratosphere by invitation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

The platform launch is expected to take place from Fort Sumner base in New Mexico, United States, during the first half of August, with a duration of six hours and reaching an altitude of 34 kilometers.

The IPN was chosen by NASA as a "mission or payload of opportunity" based on the evaluations and results obtained since the first suborbital flight in 2019, as well as because the instrument meets the standards of the U.S. space agency and is linked to ongoing space projects.

The platform will be launched from the Fort Sumner base in New Mexico, United States.

Doctor Mario Alberto Mendoza Bárcenas, a researcher at the Center for Aerospace Development (CDA) and leader of the project, reported that after a technical review and evaluation process of the proposal, the Politécnico received the formal invitation to participate with the EMIDSS-4 in the fall campaign of the Scientific Balloons Program.

In the upcoming EMIDSS-4 mission, tests of operation for two new onboard computers will be carried out, along with monitoring of stratospheric environmental variables such as air temperature, humidity, magnetic field, and pressure. Additionally, a Cubesat-type satellite model (10x10x10) will be installed, which will contain solar panels and will be developed using 3D printing.

All of the above represents a new opportunity to continue testing and experimenting with aerospace instrumentation designed and integrated in Mexico, particularly in the development of commercial-grade microcontroller-based computers for aerospace vehicles. These computers could be used in the future onboard scientific exploration and technology demonstration satellites.

Experts led by the IPN, the Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), and the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Occidente (ITESO) will participate in the next flight.

Mendoza Bárcenas stated that the results obtained from the EMIDSS-4 will reinforce the conceptual design of instrumentation for the "TEPEU-1" space mission promoted by the IPN, as well as the "ITESAT-1" in the design phase at ITESO.

The objective of the Politécnico mission is to study the middle regions of the ionosphere, their relationship with space weather, and seismic precursors, which require a series of sensors and technological instruments that will be validated before the deployment of the spacecraft.

The scientist explained that the EMIDDS-4 will be integrated with two flight computers: one of them will carry out the logical control of the tasks that the vehicle will perform using commercial off-the-shelf microcontrollers to test the conditions of the nearby space, where there is no high solar radiation, low temperatures prevail, and pressure close to vacuum.

The structure of the artifact will be hexagonal, made mostly of aluminum profiles where the technological components will be installed inside. It will measure 36x40x36 centimeters, with an approximate weight of 12 kilograms, which will be protected by thermoplastic materials to withstand the space environment.

The computers will connect to the internal and external sensors of the module to verify their power consumption, autonomy, and mechanical conditions. The module will use high-performance nickel-cadmium batteries recommended by NASA, which can operate within a wide temperature range.

Mendoza Bárcenas explained that the ITESO researchers will carry a computer based on an industrial-grade microcontroller from the automotive sector for remote sensing and image capture of the Bosque de la Primavera in the state of Jalisco, so that, based on its analysis, strategies aimed at mitigating forest fire risks can be generated.

He added that in the fourth stratospheric mission they have the support of AG Electrónica, which provides electronic materials for the assembly of the electronic boards; of Prime Glitch (a cooperative made up of students from the School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Culhuacán Unit), which manufactures the structural elements of the device.

Also, a multinational semiconductor (chip) development company has joined the project, which is interested in testing their components under near-space conditions.

The IPN mission objective is to study the middle regions of the ionosphere, their relationship with space weather, and seismic precursors.

Selección Gaceta Politécnica #161. 2023, April 30th. IPN Imagen Institucional: Read the full magazine in spanish here