634 search results for “stars” in the Public website
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Leiden astronomers calculate genesis of Oort cloud in chronological order
A team of Leiden astronomers has managed to calculate the first 100 million years of the history of the Oort cloud in its entirety. Until now, only parts of the history had been studied separately. The cloud, with roughly 100 billion comet-like objects, forms an enormous shell at the edge of our solar…
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Tracking galaxies from a few glowing pixels
In 2018, astronomer Jorryt Matthee won the C.J. Kok Jury Prize for the best dissertation of the Faculty of Science. He succeeded in finding a number of rare galaxies from the early Universe. One of them received the same initials as football player Cristiano Ronaldo: CR7.
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Bridging Sri Lanka and The Netherlands through astronomy
'Find your way from the stars’, an online workshop on Nautical Astronomy, was one of the winners of The Netherlands Online Cultural Challenge 2020. The workshop was conducted in collaboration with the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach, Leiden University’s Astronomy & Society Group, and the Department…
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ESA presents first crystal-clear Euclid photos of the cosmos
The first full-colour images of the cosmos from ESA's space telescope Euclid were presented today. Never before has a telescope been able to take such crystal-clear astronomical images of such a large part of the sky and so far into the deep universe. The five images illustrate Euclid's full potential;…
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Serena Viti is our new professor of Molecular Astrophysics
The Leiden Observatory has appointed a new professor. Selena Viti will hold a chair in Molecular Astrophysics. Viti will build a research group that combines different research techniques to unravel the secrets of local and external galaxies. ‘My main ambition is to change the way scientists interpret…
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Celestial worlds and comet hysteria in Van Dishoeck exhibition
A moon rock from the Apollo 17 mission, antique globes and the cosmos according to Wassily Kandinsky. Ewine van Dishoeck, Professor of Molecular Astrophysics, has put together an impressive exhibition at Rijksmuseum Boerhaave.
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Nienke van der Marel receives New Horizons Prize
Nienke van der Marel has been awarded the New Horizons Prize in physics for her pioneering research on planet formation. This prize is given to young, promising researchers in physics or mathematics. The astronomer and her colleagues found the first observational evidence for 'dust traps' in disks around…
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What tiny isotopes reveal about planets outside our solar system
Planets existing in other solar systems contain invaluable information about the origin of planets and life. PhD candidate Yapeng Zhang has studied their atmospheres by looking at their smallest parts: isotopes. With her research she hopes to discover what makes our own solar system unique.
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Cosmic recipe discovered for making glycerol
A team of laboratory astrophysicists from Leiden University managed to make glycerol under conditions comparable to those in dark interstellar clouds. They allowed carbon monoxide ice to react with hydrogen atoms at minus 250 degrees Celsius. The researchers publish their findings in the Astrophysical…
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Is there anybody out there? On the quest for extraterrestrial life.
Leiden Professor of Astronomy Mike Garrett is searching for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence. In his Kaiser lecture on 23 April he will discuss how far science has progressed in this quest.
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New light on dark matter
An international team of astronomers has found an unexpected link between dark matter and visible stars in stellar systems. This discovery may even cause us to reconsider our understanding of gravity. They published on their discovery in 'Nature' on 1 October.
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Ewine van Dishoeck awarded prestigious Schwarzschild Medal
The German Astronomical Society has awarded the 2019 Karl Schwarzschild Medal to professor of Molecular astrophysics Ewine van Dishoeck. She will receive the medal during the annual meeting of the society from 16 to 20 September 2019 in Stuttgart.
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Sustainable demolition of old laboratories at a glance
Leiden University is demolishing a number of old laboratories of the Faculty of Science in a sustainable way. The Dutch Green Building Council, an organisation that seeks to ensure sustainable construction and demolition, awarded this approach four stars.
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Roxanne Kieltyka elected as one of Talented 12 in chemistry
Leiden chemist Roxanne Kieltyka is part of the 2018 Talented 12 list of the American Chemical Society. That was announced by the journal Chemical & Engineering News on 19 August.
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What the galaxy will look like billions of years from now
What’s the fate of our sun, when in 5 billion years from now our Milky Way will clash with the Andromeda Galaxy? Leiden astronomers have been working on calculations on this collision. They recently gave a visual sneak preview on a big tech conference.
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Traces of building block of life found around infant suns
ALMA has observed stars like the Sun at a very early stage in their formation and found traces of methyl isocyanate - a chemical building block of life. This is the first ever detection of this prebiotic molecule towards solar-type protostars, the sort from which our Solar System evolved. The discovery…
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PhD prize for astronomer Adrian Hamers
Adrian Hamer, who obtained his PhD in the group of Simon Portegies Zwart on 21 June 2016, receives a prestigious PhD thesis award prize of the International Astronomical Union. Hamers is one of the most talented, young, theoretical astrophysicists, according to the jury.
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The launch of a new era: Leiden and the James Webb telescope (part II)
After 25 years, December will finally see the launch of the long-awaited James Webb space telescope. Leiden astronomers are watching with great excitement: not only were they involved in the construction of important instruments on board, the telescope will also reveal many new secrets of the universe,…
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Awards and Grants 2021
An overview of awards and prizes granted to our staff and students in 2021, as well as special appointments at Leiden University and other institutions.
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Searching explanations for mysterious structures in protoplanetary disks
In the discs of dust and gasses around young stars, mysterious structures occur. Together with professor Ewine van Dishoeck, PhD student Paolo Cazzoletti investigate how we can explain these forms, such as rings, spirals and holes. On 12 December, he will defend his thesis.
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Spinoza prize for Leiden astronomer Xander Tielens
Leiden astronomer Xander Tielens has been awarded a Spinoza prize, the highest scientific prize in the Netherlands. Tielens is Professor in the Physics and Chemistry of Interstellar Space. He studies large and complex, often organic, molecules found in interstellar space. The Spinoza prize carries a…
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Ewine van Dishoeck goes stargazing
From the birth of the universe to the molecules in a planet's atmosphere. The first five pictures from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) show the enormous range in which the space telescope can operate. Ewine van Dishoeck, professor of molecular astrophysics, took a look at the first images Tuesday…
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Is there oxygen on exoplanets? New telescope finds out
To what extent does exoplanet Proxima b resemble our Earth? And is there some form of life present? Astronomers hope to find answers to these questions with the new European Extremely Large Telescope (ELT). An NWO research grant of €18 million will allow a Dutch consortium to continue building instruments…
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Library Telescope
BplusC Libraries and Old Observatory Leiden working together to provide telescopes
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Our International Moot Court Competitions 2017
Each year the Grotius Centre in The Hague organises a number of internationally renowned moot court competitions. These competitions, also referred to as ‘moots’, offer international law students a unique opportunity to learn more about international (criminal) law in the City of Peace and Justice…
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Ewine van Dishoeck receives american prize for leading role in astrochemistry
The Dutch scientist prof. dr. Ewine F. van Dishoeck, Leiden Observatory, Leiden University and Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, will receive the 2018 James Craig Watson Medal from the american National Academy of Sciences (NAS).
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‘All students want to be seen and heard’
A safe place to discuss burning social issues such as racism with each other. The student workspace Space to Talk About Race and the Afro Student Association both meet this need and also organise many other activities. Three board members explain why this is necessary.
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What do PAHs do in space?
Xander Tielens, Professor of Physics and Chemistry of the Interstellar Space, has been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant to study polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in space. The combination of astronomical observations, computer models and lab research makes the research highly interdisciplinary.
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What Spinoza winners Ellemers, Sluiter and Franx will do with €2.5 million
On Monday 27 September 2010 Spinoza prize winners Naomi Ellemers, Ineke Sluiter, Marijn Franx (Leiden) and Piet Gros (Utrecht) announced their plans for their €2.5 million prize money. This was during the official ceremony in The Hague, at which the outgoing Secretary of State for Education, Culture…
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These are the seven Veni winners of the Faculty of Science
The Faculty of Science has received no less than seven Veni grants this year. Camila Correa, Max van Duijn, Stéphanie van der Pas, Sergii Pud, Mónica Varela Álvarez, Joseph Callingham, and Melissa McClure will receive a maximum of 250,000 euros to further develop their own research ideas over a three-year…
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Physics Nobel Prize for former Leiden Lorentz Professor
The 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded to Rainer Weiss, Barry Barish and Kip Thorne for their work on the measurement of gravitational waves. Thorne was Lorentz Professor in 2009 in Leiden. Physicist Jan Willem van Holten explains why this is such an important discovery. ‘A new branch of astrophysics…
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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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A+ for Leiden astronomy student who simulated chaotic interactions of black holes
Leiden astronomy Master's student Arend Moerman has received an A+ for his thesis research on the simulation of chaotic interactions of three black holes. The simulations, which he carried out together with his Leiden and Oxford colleagues, show that lighter black holes tend to slingshot each other…
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James Webb Space Telescope sees sand clouds on 'cotton candy planet' WASP-107b
A team of European astronomers has found a silicate-based weather system on a cloudy gas planet around the star WASP-107. It is the first time astronomers have found silicate clouds and rain. They also conclude that temperatures deeper in the atmosphere are rising rapidly. 'The presence of clouds has…
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Four reasons to visit the Night of Art & Sciences
On 16 September, the Rapenburg canal will be the setting for the Night of Art & Sciences. There will be plenty of things to do, including for international students and staff. We have selected four great acts in advance.
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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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Sjoert van Velzen receives Vidi grant to solve 'riddles from the universe'
Minuscule elementary particles from space colliding with Earth can give us an insight into the distant objects they come from. But first, you need to know how to catch them. With a Vidi grant from NWO, researcher Sjoert van Velzen will 'hunt' for neutrinos coming from exploding black holes.
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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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Marie Curie grant for dark matter
Leiden Observatory is going to use a new technique to carry out calculations on gravitational lensing measurements. They will do this is the context of research into the formation of elliptical galaxies. Alessandro Sonnenfeld (University of Tokyo) who developed this technique joined the research team…
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Hunting for life’s building blocks at minus 250 degrees Celsius
James Webb life’s building blocks
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Astronomer Jos de Boer receives Chesneau Prize for best dissertation
Astronomer Jos de Boer has received the Chesneau Prize in Nice for his research into so-called protoplanetary disks. The prize is awarded to the best astronomical dissertation in the field of high angular resolution. 'I consider it a good opportunity to talk about my research.'
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Sara Brandellero: ‘We need to protect the city from an excess of light’
On 25 September, lights throughout Leiden will be turned off for the Seeing Stars event. What makes the urban night so special? We asked university lecturer Sara Brandellero, who researches cities, night and migration.
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Cosmologists propose new way to form primordial black holes
What is dark matter? How do supermassive black holes form? ‘Primordial’ black holes might hold the answer to these long-standing questions. Leiden and Chinese cosmologists have identified a new way in which these hypothetical objects could be produced just after the Big Bang. Publication in Physical…
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Continuation Dutch mathematics clusters
Starting from September, the four Dutch mathematics clusters DIAMANT, NDNS, GQT and STAR will each be given 1 ME from NWO Exact Sciences, to be spent within a period of two years.
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Veni grant for research into the youngest exoplanets
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research has awarded Leiden astronomer Giovanni Rosotti a Veni grant for research into very young exoplanets. This grant offers young researchers the possibility to develop their innovative ideas for a period of three or four years.
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Eleven Vidi grants for Leiden
NWO has awarded eleven Leiden researchers a Vidi grant of 800,000 euros. The research subjects range from Cicero and muscle dystrophy to the archaeology of bogs.
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BlackGEM telescopes begin hunt for gravitational-wave sources
Three Dutch-Belgian telescopes have started operating at the ESO La Silla Observatory in Chile. This so-called BlackGEM array will scan the southern sky to hunt for cosmic events that produce gravitational waves, such as mergers of neutron stars and black holes. Leiden astronomer Rudolf le Poole is…
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Gazing into deep space
Bernhard Brandl, the new Leiden Professor of Infrared Astronomy, is developing instruments for the world’s largest telescopes. These telescopes can be used to observe objects in space that are more than 13 billion years old. Brandl will deliver his inaugural lecture on 26 September.
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Leiden PhD researcher wins NASA Hubble Fellowship
Leiden PhD researcher Karin Öberg is one of the 17 winners of the NASA Hubble Fellowship. When she has obtained her PhD this autumn she will move to the United States for three years to conduct post-doctoral research into the role of ice in star formation.
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New detection method for quasars in the early Universe
Astronomers from Leiden Observatory have developed a new method to find distant quasars and better distinguish them from other objects that look like them, using machine learning techniques. The research result has been accepted for publication in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics. It is the last…