IPN Launches EMIDSS-8 into the Stratosphere with NASA

Reporter: Zenaida Alzaga / Photographs: PERATON-NASA – August 24, 2026

The experimental model was successfully launched, further consolidating IPN’s leadership in the development of Mexican aerospace technology

The Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN) participated in its eighth stratospheric mission through NASA’s Scientific Balloon Program (CSBF), with the EMIDSS-8 suborbital module (Experimental Module for the Iterative Design of Satellite Subsystems, version 8), as part of the FY26 Fall-FTS Campaign conducted from the Fort Sumner base in New Mexico, United States.

The IPN research team participating in the mission is led by Dr. Mario Alberto Mendoza Bárcenas, a scientist at the Polytechnic’s Center for Aerospace Development (CDA) and a candidate for membership in the National System of Researchers (SNII), in collaboration with the Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology (ICAT) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

Several IPN academic units also participated in the project, including the Professional Interdisciplinary Engineering Unit, Zacatecas Campus (UPIIZ), and the Center for Scientific and Technological Studies (CECyT) No. 19 “Leona Vicario.”

The mission validated the engineering model of the TEPEU-1 satellite, which, once placed into orbit, will be designed to monitor space weather conditions.

The launch of Test Flight STF #763 NT, carrying EMIDSS-8 and other scientific experiments, took place on Saturday, August 22, at 12:08 a.m. Mexico City time, with a six-hour flight duration over U.S. territory.

Once EMIDSS-8 returns to Mexico, expected by the end of 2026, the data collected will contribute to various scientific studies and aerospace projects being conducted by IPN academic units.

Dr. Mendoza Bárcenas explained that experts began designing and integrating EMIDSS-8 in early 2026. After meeting NASA’s rigorous requirements and completing technical tests, including electromagnetic compatibility and safety assessments, the module was integrated into NASA’s suborbital platform. The process also included mechanical models and simulations developed at the Professional Interdisciplinary Engineering Unit, Hidalgo Campus (UPIIH).

In addition to validating the electronic equipment of the two 1U CubeSat satellites, including IPN’s TEPEU-1, the mission carried several other projects: Trinidad V3 (Autonomous Data and Image Acquisition System for Suborbital Platforms), developed at ESIME Zacatenco; SARCAFÉ-BIO: Sargassum and Coffee as Natural Reinforcements for Biopolymeric Test Specimens, from CECyT 19 “Leona Vicario”; and the new generation of Tecuitlatl II from UPIIZ.

An ITESAT-1 engineering module from the Western Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESO) was also integrated into the mission.