News
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New start-up company: Leiden astronomers develop a technology to detect gas leaksSOCIETAL IMPACT 26 March 2026Helping industry to spot dangerous and climate-harming gas leaks faster, cheaper, and more reliably than today’s tools: that's what Leiden University ...
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Two planets-in-formation discovered around young star WISPIT 2Astronomy 24 March 2026In the disk surrounding the young star WISPIT 2, not one but two planets are taking shape. Leiden PhD candidate Richelle van Capelleveen played a key ...
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In Memoriam Erik Deul 1958 – 2026In Memoriam 17 March 2026On March 13, Dr. Erik Deul passed away at the age of 67. He leaves behind his wife Wilma, children Caroline and Wouter, and grandchildren Joris, Stach...
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Vici grants for research into antibodies, galaxies and Indigenous communities26 February 2026Three Leiden researchers have been awarded a Vici grant by the Dutch Research Council. The funding of up to 1.5 million euros supports ‘talented, adve...
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ALMA reveals hidden chemical processes at the heart of the Milky WayAstronomy 25 February 2026Astronomers in Leiden have used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in northern Chile to produce a new detailed image of the centr...
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Largest radio survey ever maps the Universe in unprecedented detailAstronomy 19 February 2026The radio telescope LOFAR, with a major contribution from Leiden Observatory, has produced the most detailed radio map of the Universe ever made. Neve...
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Halley’s Comet wrongly named: 11th-century English monk predates British astronomerAstronomy 23 January 2026The British astronomer and mathematician Edmond Halley was not, after all, the first to understand the cycle of the comet that now bears his name. Thi...
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Answering the biggest questions with the tiniest particlesLeiden Science Young Talent Award 09 December 2025From lectures by Robbert Dijkgraaf to a telescope on the ocean floor: during his double bachelor’s in Physics and Astronomy, Jelle Oonk discovered tha...
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New endowed chair brings astronomy and AI together. ‘AI can help improve our understanding of the Universe’PROFESSOR BY SPECIAL APPOINTMENT 02 December 2025AI helps astronomers to understand our Universe better, and that role is set to grow. Therefore, ASTRON and Leiden University are establishing a new r...
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Arrival of cryostat marks milestone on the road to the world’s largest telescopeINSTRUMENTATION 25 November 2025After years of development, the moment has finally arrived: a massive cryostat, a highly advanced freezer that keeps the sensitive components extremel...
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One step closer to understanding planet-formation: Julia Santos refutes a 20 year standing paradigmASTROCHEMISTRY 24 November 2025How do atoms and molecules end up forming planets? That's what astrochemist Julia Santos studied during her PhD. She discovered the dominant process b...
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Evidence of a massive stellar storm on a nearby starRADIO ASTRONOMY 12 November 2025Astronomer Joseph Callingham and his team have observed for the first time a clear signal from a giant burst from a star outside our solar system. Thi...
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Scientists discover building blocks of life in ice around a forming star in neighboring galaxyAstrochemistry 21 October 2025Astronomers have found complex organic ice outside the Milky Way for the first time. The discovery shows that the building blocks of life could arise ...
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Astronomy for beginners: new minor opens up the universe to everyoneonderwijs 13 October 2025From telescopes to science fiction: in just one semester, students with no background in physics or astronomy get to explore the universe. The first g...
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Greedy black hole feeds via two spiral armsAstronomy research 13 October 2025The supermassive black hole at the center of the Circinus galaxy is being fed with gas by two spiral arms. This is what PhD candidate Wout Goesaert di...