13 search results for “universe” in the Public website
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Exploring the universe
How did our universe come into being? Are there any other planets that support life? Read all about it in our new research dossier ‘Exploring the universe’.
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72 galaxies never deteted before
Using the MUSE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile, an international team of scientists, including many Leiden astronomers, have conducted the deepest spectroscopic survey ever. They focused on the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, measuring distances and properties of 1600 very faint galaxies…
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Habitable planets around pulsars theoretically possible
It is theoretically possible that habitable planets exist around pulsars, rotating neutron stars. Such planets must have an enormous atmosphere that convert the deadly X-rays and high energy particles of the pulsar into heat. That is stated in a scientific paper by astronomers Alessandro Patruno and…
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Ewine van Dishoeck wins Kavli prize for astrophysics
How are stars and planets formed? Is life outside Earth possible? These questions are being researched by Professor of Molecular Astrophysics Ewine van Dishoeck at Leiden University. Her pioneering work has earned her the Kavli prize in the category of astrophysics. The prize consists of 1,000,000 dollars…
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‘Do something for the broader astronomy community as well’
As Director-General of the ESO for the past ten years, Leiden University astronomer Tim de Zeeuw had ‘the best astronomy job in the world’. Back at the Leiden Observatory, he is focusing on the first 3D map of the Milky Way.
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Many planetary systems prematurely evaporate into thin air
When stars are born, large clouds of gas and dust form that are known as circumstellar discs. Research by PhD candidate Francisca Concha-Ramírez shows that strong radiation from neighbouring stars soon evaporates the dust in these discs, which can prevent planet formation at an early stage. PhD defence…
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Green light to build revolutionary new experiment at CERN to search for unknown particles
After many years of preparations, CERN has approved a groundbreaking new experiment: the Search for Hidden Particles (SHiP). Physicist Alexey Boyarsky was involved from the start. ‘We know there is physics that’s missing and we aim to find it.’
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SRON space research institute to relocate to Leiden and Delft
The SRON space research institute currently located in Utrecht will be relocating to South Holland. The institute, which constructs highly advanced technological instruments for astronomy research and for research on exoplanets, will relocate to new premises adjacent to Leiden University's Science Campus.…
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Newton-telescope finds missing intergalactic material
Astronomers from, among others, SRON and Leiden Observatory have discovered long-sought intergalactic gas with ESA’s space telescope XMM-Newton. This gas is one of the pieces of the puzzle to map the total amount of ‘normal’ matter in the universe. The research will be published in Nature on 21 June…
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Experience one hundred years of astronomy at the Old Observatory
How big is the universe? How do stars form and evolve? And does life exist elsewhere in the Universe? These main questions in astronomy are the themes of the new exhibition Above & Beyond, which was created in honour of the hundredth anniversary of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The exhibition…
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This is how ESA telescope Euclid is going to visualise dark matter
How can you see something that’s invisible? Well, with Euclid! This future ESA telescope will map the structure of the Universe and teach us more about invisible dark matter and dark energy. Scientific coordinator of Euclid and Leiden astronomer Henk Hoekstra explains how this works.
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Mesmerising images from James Webb space telescope
The 'deepest and sharpest' image of the Universe to date: the first photos from the new James Webb space telescope yesterday mesmerised astronomers and the public alike. Leiden Professor of Molecular Astrophysics, Ewine van Dishoeck, spoke to various media outlets about the first images, which include…
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FLAMINGO: dark matter, ordinary matter, and neutrinos in the biggest cosmological simulation ever
Not only dark matter, but also ordinary matter and dark energy are tracked in the largest ever cosmological computer simulation ever. In the FLAMINGO simulations, you can see virtual galaxies and clusters of galaxies emerging over the course of billions of years. This is no easy task: with more than…