Hungarian Space Research Draws Strong Interest at London’s Space-Comm Expo Europe
Hungarian space research and technology attracted significant interest at Space-Comm Expo Europe in London, one of Europe’s leading events for the space research and space industry sector. The Hungarian stand – featuring astronauts, plants engineered for space and Hungarian-developed radiation measurement technologies – became one of the most popular at the conference.
Researchers from the HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network, together with astronauts representing the HUNOR programme, presented Hungary’s latest space research results and experiments conducted aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the HUNOR programme, as well as their potential applications for industry and the economy. The delegation was led by Zsolt Szalay, Vice-President for Engineering and Natural Sciences at HUN-REN.
The stand attracted strong interest from the more than 5,000 professionals attending the event, including researchers, industry representatives and government stakeholders. Visitors also had the opportunity to meet the Hungarian research astronaut of the Axiom-4 mission, Tibor Kapu in person, as well as Gyula Cserényi, the backup astronaut selected for the mission.
Hungary’s presence was further highlighted by Tibor Kapu’s keynote presentation on the Axiom-4 mission and its scientific experiments carried out as part of the HUNOR programme. He later joined a panel discussion with British astronaut Tim Peake, strategic adviser to Axiom Space, and Zsolt Szalay. During the discussion, the astronauts stressed that human-led space missions remain essential even in an era of rapidly advancing robotics.
Panel discussion moderated by the Hungarian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Ferenc Kumin, with British astronaut Tim Peake, strategic adviser to Axiom Space, Hungarian astronaut, Tibor Kapu, and Zsolt Szalay, Vice-President for Engineering and Natural Sciences at HUN-REN, during the Space-Comm Expo Europe event in London. Credit: HUN-REN Communications.
According to Zsolt Szalay, the fast-growing global space industry offers significant opportunities even for smaller countries to gain a competitive advantage by focusing on carefully selected strategic areas.
Within the HUN-REN network, space-related research is currently conducted in eight institutes by around two dozen research groups and nearly 160 researchers. Four institutes represented this community at the exhibition, demonstrating the strength of coordinated cooperation across disciplines and institutions.
“Our comprehensive space research programme, launched last month, aims to strengthen collaboration between research groups and better connect Hungarian research with leading international partners from both science and industry,” said Zsolt Szalay. “During the two-day event we received numerous enquiries from leading global companies, and discussions on potential collaborations will continue in the coming weeks.”
Tibor Kapu, Gyula Cserényi, Zsolt Szalay and Dr Balázs Nagy R&D Director of HUNOR (the Hungarian Space Programme) also participated in a panel discussion at the Hungarian Embassy in London on 5 March. ‘Proven in Orbit: Implementing Scientific Experiments on the International Space Station’ was hosted by the Hungarian Ambassador His Excellency Ferenc Kumin, Phd. The discussion, which was moderated by Europlanet Research Infrastructure Coordinator, Nigel Mason, provided practical insights into building national space capability and fostering international partnerships, offering relevant lessons for both emerging and established space nations.
Hungarian space research has achieved internationally recognised success in radiation measurement and dosimetry. The PILLE dosimeter first flew in space in the 1970s and has been standard equipment aboard the International Space Station since 2003. It remains the only device capable of measuring the additional radiation dose astronauts receive during spacewalks.
Hungarian researchers have also made significant advances in small satellite development and space weather research. The country’s scientific infrastructure – including the Zero Magnetic Laboratory near Sopron and the accelerator facilities of the Institute for Nuclear Research in Debrecen capable of simulating solar wind – also provides internationally competitive research capabilities.
Hungary and the HUN-REN Hungarian Research Network aim to play an increasingly active role in international scientific and industrial collaborations, including programmes of ESA and NASA. The strong interest generated at Space-Comm Expo Europe confirmed that presenting Hungary’s space research capabilities in an integrated way can open the door to new international partnerships.
The HUN-REN stand, astronaut ‘meet and greet’ with Tibor Kapu and Gyula Cserényi, and panel discussion with Ferenc Kumin, British astronaut Tim Peake, Hungarian astronaut, Tibor Kapu, and Zsolt Szalay, Vice-President for Engineering and Natural Sciences at HUN-REN.
Europlanet has opened a call for funding proposals of up to 5000 € to support the activities of its members. Proposals should be submitted by the Chair (or designated representative) of a Europlanet Regional Hub, Committee or Working Group (WG).
The deadline for the call is 16 March 2026. Projects proposed in the current call should be completed by the end of 2026.
To find out more about the call and application process, please see the call page.
You can also find out about projects funded in previous rounds of this scheme here.
Tiny Enceladus Exercises Giant Electromagnetic Influence at Saturn
Europlanet Press Release – For Immediate Release
Enceladus, a tiny moon of Saturn, trails a wake of electromagnetic ripples that extends over half a million kilometres.
A major study by an international team of researchers using data from the NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini spacecraft has revealed a lattice-like structure of crisscrossing reflected waves that flow downstream behind the moon in Saturn’s equatorial plane, but also reach up to very high northern and southern latitudes. The analysis of data from four instruments aboard Cassini, collected over the mission’s 13-year duration, demonstrates the crucial role that Enceladus plays in circulating energy and momentum around Saturn’s space environment.
Plumes of water vapour and dust stream through cracks in the icy surface of the southern hemisphere of Enceladus. The water molecules and particles from these geysers become ionised when exposed to radiation, creating an electrically-charged plasma that interacts with Saturn’s magnetic field as it sweeps past Enceladus.
“Enceladus, Saturn’s small icy moon, is famous for its water geysers, but its actual impact and interaction with the giant planet has remained partly unknown. This result from Cassini transforms our vision of the moon’s role in the Saturnian system,” said Lina Hadid of the Laboratoire de Physique de Plasmas (LPP) in France, who led the study.
The study, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, shows how wave structures, known as ‘Alfvén wings’, travel like vibrations on a string along magnetic field lines connecting Enceladus to Saturn’s pole. The initial ‘main’ Alfvén wing is reflected back-and-forth both by Saturn’s ionosphere and the plasma torus that encircles Enceladus’s orbit, resulting complex and structured system. By using a multi-instrumental approach, researchers were able to show that the influence of Enceladus extends over a record distance of over 504,000 km – more than 2,000 times the moon’s radius.
“This is the first time such an extensive electromagnetic reach by Enceladus has been observed, proving that this small moon acts as a giant planetary-scale Alfvén wave generator,” said Thomas Chust of LPP, co-author of the study. “This work sets the stage for future studies of other systems, such as the icy moons of Jupiter or exoplanets, by showing that a small moon with an electrically-conducting atmosphere can influence its host over vast distances on the scale of the giant planet itself.”
The researchers examined archive data from the suite of instruments carried by Cassini to study electromagnetic wave and particle interactions, looking for flyby and non-flyby paths near Enceladus that showed evidence of magnetic connections between the moon and Saturn. On 36 occasions, they found signatures related to Alfvén waves, including at much further distances than they originally anticipated.
As well as the large-scale structures, the team found evidence that turbulence teases out the waves into filaments within the main Alfvén wing. This fine-scale structure helps the waves bounce off Enceladus’s plasma torus and reach the high-latitudes in Saturn’s ionosphere where auroral features associated with the moon form.
“These results highlight the importance for future missions to Enceladus, such as the planned ESA orbiter and lander in the 2040s, to carry instrumentation that can study these electromagnetic interactions in even more detail,” said Hadid.
The study was led by LPP in collaboration with researchers from French laboratories including IRAP, ISAE-SUPAERO, LATMOS, LAM, and LIRA/Observatoire de Paris. International institutions participating in the study included ESA, IRFU in Sweden, MPS in Germany, CAS in the Czech Republic, Johns Hopkins APL, UCLA, the Universities of Michigan, Boston, and Iowa in the United States, DIAS in Ireland, MSSL/UCL, and Imperial College London in the United Kingdom. The CDPP/AMDA tool used in the study was supported through the Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure project with funding from the European Commission.
Publication
Hadid, L. Z., Chust, T., Wahlund, J.‐E., Morooka, M. W., Roussos, E., Witasse, O., et al. (2026). Evidence of an extended Alfvén wing system at Enceladus: Cassini’s multi‐instrument observations. Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, 131, e2025JA034657. https://doi.org/10.1029/2025JA034657
Images and Animation
Animation Caption: Animation of the electrodynamic interaction between Enceladus and Saturn. The primary Alfvén wing is shown in blue, and the reflected Alfvén wings in magenta. The arrow indicates the corotation direction of the Enceladus plasma torus. Relative sizes of Saturn and Enceladus are not to scale. Design & Animation: Fabrice Etifier – École Polytechnique.
Image Caption: Illustration of the electrodynamic interaction between Enceladus and Saturn. The primary Alfvén wing is shown in blue, and the reflected Alfvén wings in magenta. The arrow indicates the corotation direction of the Enceladus plasma torus. Relative sizes of Saturn and Enceladus are not to scale. Design & Animation: Fabrice Etifier – École Polytechnique.
Image Caption: Plumes of water vapour and dust stream through cracks in the icy surface of the southern hemisphere of Enceladus. The water molecules and particles from these geysers become ionised when exposed to radiation, creating an electrically-charged plasma that interacts with Saturn’s magnetic field as it sweeps past Enceladus. Credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute.
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
Europlanet Transnational Access Call 2026 – Free Access to Facilities
Europlanet has launched a new call for Transnational Access (TA), which enables researchers who are members of Europlanet (individual members or staff working for organisational members) to visit participating facilities that offer simulation and analysis capabilities relevant to planetary science.
The Europlanet TA Programme 2026 offers access to 25 facilities in ten internationally renowned research centres in Europe and South Korea. The facilities are tailored for the simulation or characterisation of planetary conditions and materials. The programme supports all travel and local accommodation costs for researchers during their visit to participating facilities.
If you are interested in submitting an application to the Europlanet TA Call 2026, check out the call page to find more information about the call and how to submit your application. Please note that you must contact the facility to discuss the feasibility of your proposal before submitting your application. The call will close on 16 March 2026.
You should plan for your visits to take place between the end of April and December 2026. Please note that some facilities are only available in certain months, or have pre-requirements for applications. See the individual facility pages for details.
Building on the European Commission-funded TA programme from 2009-2024, Europlanet now offers a sustainable programme of annual TA calls funded through membership subscriptions.
For the 2026 Call, we are delight to welcome new institutions and/or new facilities that will be offered for Transnational Access through Europlanet for the first time. These include:
New Year’s Day 2026 is Europlanet’s 21st birthday. To celebrate, we highlight 21 things that Europlanet has achieved since its foundation on 1 January 2005.
The Europlanet Science Congress
Opening ceremony of EPSC-DPS2025. Credit: Europlanet.
First held in Berlin in 2006, the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) is the largest annual meeting on planetary science in Europe and regularly attracts over 1200 participants. Its interdisciplinary, interactive and adaptive format makes EPSC an ideal place for the global planetary community to share ideas and build new connections. Joint meetings with the American Astronomical Society’s Division of Planetary Sciences (DPS) and the European Astrobiology Network Association (EANA) have brought together even bigger international and cross-disciplinary audiences, with the recent EPSC-DPS2025 in Helskinki becoming the largest planetary meeting to date in Europe with 1800 participants.
Research and Technology Infrastructure
The Laboratory of Electron Induced Fluorescence at Comenius University. Credit: Comenius University.
Europlanet provides access to state-of-the-art research and technology infrastructure (RTI) to support planetary science and space exploration. The distributed RTI includes facilities for the simulation of planetary environments, analysis of planetary samples, testing and development of space technologies, and support of interdisciplinary studies. Our Transnational Access (TA) programme is designed to allow researchers from anywhere in the world, and at all career stages, to have access to facilities to support scientific and technological excellence in planetary/space research and to foster international collaborations. To date, Europlanet has funded over 600 research visits, amounting to in excess of 5,500 days of access (15 years), involving over 800 individual researchers accessing 23 laboratories (with over 80 individual facilities), 12 planetary analogue field sites and 17 telescopes.
Europlanet is a grass-roots organisation, supported by individual members since 2018 and organisational members since 2025. Membership benefits include discounted fees for EPSC, access to facilities, expert exchanges, webinars, training, workshops, funding schemes and much more. Join now to help us continue our mission to support the planetary community around the world.
Participants at EPEC Annual Week 2025. Credit: EPEC.
The Europlanet Early Career (EPEC) network is organised by early-career researchers for early-career researchers, and includes volunteers from across the Europlanet international community. The EPEC network is open to all students, doctoral candidates and early-career planetary scientists and space professionals whose last degree (e.g. MSc or PhD) was obtained a maximum of 7 years ago (excluding parental leave, serious illness and similar delays).
EPEC’s activities, including Annual Week and EPEC@EPSC, aim to form a strong network between young professionals by organising early-career-relevant events and by engaging in different projects amongst different focus areas (outreach, diversity, early career support). As early careers comprise over half Europlanet’s individual members and attendees at EPSC, EPEC ensures that the (scientifically) young members of our community have a clear voice within Europlanet to shape the future of planetary and space sciences and engineering.
The launch of the Europlanet Colombia Regional Hub in November 2025. Credit: Europlanet Colombia.
Europlanet’s Regional Hubs support the development of planetary science at a national and regional level, particularly in countries and areas that are currently under-represented within the community. Our Hub Committees organise networking events and workshops to support the research community, as well as to build links with amateur astronomers, industrial partners, policymakers, educators, the media and the wider public. In addition to 10 European Regional Hubs, a Colombian Regional Hub was established in 2025 to support the community in Colombia and Latin America.
Projects
The launch of the European Planetology Network (EuroPlaNet) in 2005. Credit: Europlanet.
Europlanet was founded as a Coordination Action funded by the European Commission (EC) in 2005-2008 to promote networking, support the sharing of resources and overcome fragmentation in the European planetary science community. Through a series of further EC grants awarded between 2009 and 2024, Europlanet has subsequently developed into a global distributed research infrastructure that offers coordinated access to services and facilities spread over 5 continents, supporting a community of thousands of users in academia, industry and in the wider community. In total, the EC has invested €28 million in Europlanet to support the planetary community.
Europlanet has received funding from the European Commission under Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637.
VESPA
Superimposed olivine map from OMEGA / Mars-Express in N Syrtis Major area (Jezero crater is at the bottom), displayed in the Aladin service and accessed through VESPA. Credit: Aladin.
VESPA (Virtual European Solar and Planetary Access) is a web-based search interface to identify and access planetary science and heliophysics data provided by the science community. Developed through EC-funded Europlanet projects, and hosted and maintained by the Observatory of Paris, VESPA is freely available to researchers and the general public. The VESPA portal supports user-friendly searching on metadata associated with generic observation conditions (such as target, instrument, time/space/spectral coverages, illumination conditions, etc) and metadata specific to each dataset (such as instrumental parameters) via the EPN-TAP protocol, which is now a standard of the International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA) for Solar system data. Nearly 250 EPN-TAP data services of various size are declared in the IVOA registry, of which 94 are currently validated and accessible via the portal – including ESA’s Planetary Science Archive (PSA). VESPA also offers an easy solution for small teams to share newly-derived data from a publication or a research project.
SPIDER
Europlanet’s SPIDER Planetary Space Weather Services provide contextual information on predictions and alerts for planetary space weather analysis and payload or spacecraft operations. SPIDER enables researchers to take advantage of data from a suite of missions at different points in the Solar System. Applications of SPIDER’s tools have led to several high-impact publications, and have been used to support planning of the BepiColombo and Juice missions. Opportunities identified through SPIDER for synergistic observations by BepiColombo during its cruise phase with the Solar Orbiter and Solar Parker Probe missions have also been implemented by ESA and JAXA.
GMAP and Winter School
GMAP Winter School Banner 2026.
The Geological Mapping (GMAP) activity provides a complete infrastructure for the geological mapping of planetary bodies. As well as everything needed to create planetary maps, GMAP provides guidelines and insights on how to produce effective mapping products for scientific exploitation, as well as information on how to display and archive results in a structured way.
GMAP supports researchers who are interested in learning how to build their own mapping products, as well as mappers who want to learn how to incorporate other types of data analysis into their products.
One of GMAP’s major successes has been the establishment of the annual Geology & Planetary Mapping Winter School. Now in its fifth iteration, the Winter School provides training for anyone interested in planetary mapping to build knowledge and skills in planetary mapping. Participants can follow synchronously or asynchronously to accommodate different time zones. The 2026 edition will run from 26-30 January 2026.
Amateur astronomer, Florence Libotte (centre) with astronomers Erika Pakštienė (left) and Gražina Tautvaišienė (right) at the Moletai Observatory, Lithuania.
The Europlanet Telescope Network brings together medium and small telescopes to facilitate and coordinate observations related to planetary science. Founded in 2020, the telescope network has awarded 256.5 observing nights and supported 44 projects on planetary topics from near Earth objects to exoplanets, as well as astrophysical subjects including black holes and binary star systems. As well as supporting the professional scientific community, the Europlanet telescope Network has provided access and training for amateur astronomers to enable them to contribute to planetary research. Since the end of the EC-funded project, the Europlanet Telescope Network has maintained a list of telescopes willing to offer observing time to the community. The Europlanet Telescope Network currently unites 21 observatories with 32 telescopes in 16 countries.
Europlanet holds monthly webinars on a range of topics from science to policy, diversity and outreach. Quarterly webinars are also co-organised with the Science Team of the ESA Juice mission.
Europlanet webinars provide quarterly updates on the JUICE mission on its long journey to reach and explore Jupiter and its icy moons. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab/NASA/JPL/J Nichols/U Leicester/U Arizona/DLR.
Group photo of in-person participants at ERIM 2023 in Bratislava, Slovakia. Credit: Europlanet/J-D Bodénan.
In addition to EPSC and EPEC Annual Week, Europlanet organises a range of meetings, summer schools, workshops and training sessions to support the community. Our interactive online Teams Days, held 2-3 times per year, are an opportunity for the community to provide input and feedback into Europlanet’s strategy and operations. The Europlanet Research Infrastructure Meeting (ERIM) in 2023 comprised a series of interactive workshops with the aim of promoting collaboration across the Europlanet community. More recently, policy workshops organised in partnership with other research infrastructures have helped share information on upcoming opportunities and best practice for distributed RIs.
In total, over the past two decades, Europlanet has provided training for over 7,500 members of the planetary community, with a particular focus on early career researchers.
Join hundreds of other Europlanet members on our Discord server to keep up with news, events, job opportunities and to connect with colleagues around the world. The server is designed with a variety of channels to facilitate discussions and interactions, including text channels, discussion forums and voice channels. We also hold regular informal catch ups and science discussion ‘hangouts’.
Europlanet is committed to building a diverse, inclusive planetary science and ensuring that individuals within that community experience equal opportunity, regardless of gender, disability, ethnic origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, marital status, age, nationality or socioeconomic background. The Europlanet Diversity Committee acts as a strategic task force to advise, coordinate and champion activities across Europlanet that further the association’s commitment to equality, diversity and inclusivity. As well as activities around EPSC, the Diversity Committee organises events to raise awareness of diversity, inclusivity and accessibility in the planetary community, such as through the Planetary Science Wiki Edit-a-thon.
Outreach
Outreach and education have been a core part of Europlanet initiatives since its foundation the early 2000s. Our objective is to support the planetary science community at a grass roots level to do more public engagement and educational activities, and to share best practice, training and resources to increase the impact of those efforts. Over 20 public engagement and education projects have been supported with more than 135,000€ of seed funding by Europlanet.
The Outreach Working Group coordinates activities, such as EPSC Goes Live for Schools, funding programmes, sharing of best practice and the annual prize for Public Engagement.
Policy and Industry
Europlanet exhibition in the European Parliament. Credit: Europlanet.
Europlanet engagement with policy makers and industry aim to build collaborations and create synergies between cutting-edge science and the technological challenges of planetary science and exploration.
Europlanet has organised and participated in briefings, events, conference sessions (e.g. at EPSC) and other opportunities to engage policy makers in the European Parliament and the European Commission with planetary science, as well as engage with high-level representatives of ESA, NASA and other national and international space agencies. Organising events within the European Parliament has proved an effective platform to develop relationships with MEPs and other stakeholders, enabling the community to feed into discussions on future funding and policies relevant to planetary science.
Industry engagement activities have included organising technology foresight workshops, collaborations with space industry trade associations, developing contacts and networks within industry, participating in industry conferences and events, and convening industry and policy sessions at EPSC.
Europlanet’s distributed infrastructure offers industrial partners access to simulation and testing facilities for a range of environments that planetary and space missions may encounter through launch to their destination in orbit or on a planetary surface. By accessing Europlanet facilities, companies and SMEs can increase the value of their technology by increasing the Technology Readiness Level (TRL), understanding how instrumentation operates under realistic planetary conditions, or by identifying potential issues. Several of our RTI facilities are operated by commercial organisations.
Collaborations
Collaborations stimulated through Europlanet, and involving its beneficiaries, have led to several successful proposals for new projects funded through the European Commission and national agencies. From the development of Machine Learning tools to mobilising researchers in Africa, these external projects act as multipliers for the impact of Europlanet in many different communities.
Expert Exchanges
Expert exchange to observing the DART impact in Kenya. Credit: The Travelling Telescope.
Europlanet’s Expert Exchange Programme aims to support the mobilisation of the planetary community to share expertise and best practice and to prepare new facilities and services for integration into Europlanet’s research infrastructure. The programme provides funding for short visits (up to one week) and over the last two decades, more than 200 expert exchanges have been supported.
Topics for visits have included training on the use of instrumentation, short scientific projects, improvements to facilities and the development of outreach collaborations. Evaluation of the visits show that bringing individuals together to exchange expertise often leading to synergies that would not happen otherwise, particularly for researchers from under-represented countries. The programme has also supported the professional development of early career scientists, helping them to prepare for careers outside academia.
Tactile Mars exhibit from the Planets in Your Hand exhibition funded by Europlanet in 2017. Credit: Kosmas Gazeas.
Europlanet offers funding and bursaries to support the community in various ways. Each year, we provide over 100 bursaries for early career and researchers from under-represented countries to attend EPSC. The Committee Funding Scheme offers grants of up to 5000 € to support the scientific, community-building and outreach activities of our members.
Europlanet recognises the contributions of the planetary science community through a range of medals, prizes and other awards. The Europlanet Medals, launched in 2025, honour outstanding contributions from individuals of three different scientific career-stages to the subjects covered by the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC). The Europlanet Prize for Public Engagement with Planetary Science is also awarded to individuals or groups who have developed innovative and socially impactful practices in planetary science communication and education. The EPSC Outstanding Poster Competition recognises the work of early career researchers at EPSC.
Impact
Fernando Gomez from Argentina participated in a Transnational Access visit to facilities at the Korean Basic Science Institute (KBSI). Credit: F Gomez.
Europlanet activities are evaluated against a framework of core indicators for assessing scientific, technological, education and training, economic, and social and societal impacts. Evaluation shows that the impact of activities to date have been particularly strong in the scientific, technological, education and training areas.
The 197 Transnational Access projects supported through the most-recent Europlanet 2024 RI project are expected to lead to over 300 publications and 400 conference presentations. Interviews and follow-up surveys show that over 90% of visitors are planning future collaborations with their host facility. In particular, early career researchers and students report that the TA programme provides them with opportunities – including collaboration and network-building – that would not otherwise have been available to them, thus accelerating their career development.
Upgrades to facilities have provided increasing support for local infrastructure and associated employment, and there has been at least one SME company that was developed as a result of the TA programme.
The new Europlanet Evaluation Unit now offers evaluation support and consultancy for external organisations that would like to develop an evaluation framework or implement an impact evaluation of their activities.
Teamwork
Europlanet’s existence and continued activities would not be possible without the support of many individuals and organisations. In particular, we would like to thank our Executive Board, Committees and Working Groups for their huge investment of time and energy in making Europlanet a thriving and vibrant community. We thank our individual and organisational members for supporting us and participating in our activities. We are also indebted to the European Commission for funding over the years, as well as our project officers at the EC for their support, guidance and advice.
Europlanet 2024 RI has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149.
The first Europlanet Regional Hub outside Europe, Europlanet Colombia, was launched on 8 November 2025 during an event attended by 120 people at the Maloka Interactive Science and Technology Centre in Bogotá.
The inauguration event highlighted some of the most significant national research initiatives that relate to planetary science and provided an opportunity to find out more about and engage with Colombians who work in this area. Speakers included Dr Alejandro Guerrero-Caicedo (Universidad del Valle) and Dr Alberto Benavides-Herrán (Pontificia Universidad Javeriana) who travelled from Cali to attend. Members of RECA Educación, winners of the Europlanet Prize for Public Engagement 2025, gave a presentation on their work to engage schools and students across Colombia. Video messages were sent by Dr Heidy M. Quitián-Lara, Dr Felipe Fantuzzi, Dr Jonathan Pelegrin and Dr Tatiana Bocanegra, as well as Prof Nigel Mason, the former President of Europlanet.
The aim of Europlanet Colombia is to create a space where knowledge and passion for the cosmos intertwine, promoting collaborative networks that will drive the region’s scientific future and strengthen high-impact research. This new Europlanet contact point in Colombia will foster collaboration on cutting-edge projects across a wide range of disciplines, including:
Solar System Bodies
Astrobiology and the Origins of Life
Planetary Formation and Evolution
Planetary Environments
Space Exploration and Instrumentation
Planetary Geosciences
Astrochemistry
Astronomical Instrumentation, Data Acquisition, Management, and Analysis
Science Education and Public Outreach
Heritage Astronomy and Indigenous Knowledge Systems
Europlanet Teams Day returns on 12 November 2025! Join us online, for free, for a fast-paced day of networking themed around interactive activities and breakout sessions with our regional hubs, thematic committees and working groups.
Europlanet Teams Day will get the community talking and working together, with an emphasis on upcoming opportunities within Europlanet and within the broader European funding landscape.
Join us on 12 November to meet new collaborators within the Europlanet community, find out about upcoming opportunities and how you can be involved.
‘Impact, Industry Engagement, Research Security and Dual Use’ Workshop at Industriens Hus, Copenhagen
Around 30 representatives of a diverse range of research infrastructures gathered at Industriens Hus, Copenhagen, Denmark and online from 20 – 21 October 2025 for a hybrid workshop ahead of the Research and Technology Infrastructures (RTI) Summit 2025.
The meeting, which was co-organised by Aarhus University, the European Science Foundation and Europlanet, included a workshop on impact evaluation. Presentations and discussions covered industry engagement, research security and Dual Use, as well as upcoming opportunities within Horizon Europe and an update on a new journal focused on RIs.
The session also included an update on a White Paper on Distributed Research Infrastructures, which was discussed at the previous workshop in Krakow in June 2025. The title of the White Paper has been updated to: ‘Towards an Inclusive Framework for Europe’s Research Infrastructures: Embracing diversity in form, theme, and scale.’
In line with feedback from the Krakow meeting, additional adjustments have been made to reflect that issues in visibility in European RI policy for many RIs do not specifically originate from the size but more from the form and the prioritisation of the ESFRI Roadmap RIs and ERICs. The White Paper concludes that: ‘A resilient, adaptable, and dynamic research ecosystem requires strategic support for all RIs.’ The new version has been submitted to the European publication platform Open Research Europe (ORE) for final review.
Images
Presentations
Horizon Europe Updates – Nigel Mason (Europlanet / University of Kent)
A funding schemefor early career researchers in Britain and Ireland – NOW CLOSED
The Europlanet Ireland & UK Hub invites applications from Early Career Researchers (ECRs) in planetary science and related fields for the 2025 ECR Fund.
This fund provides awards of up to €250 (approx. £215) per applicant to support attendance at conferences, meetings, or events taking place in the UK or Ireland before 31 December 2025. Funds may be used to help cover travel, accommodation, or registration costs.
*UPDATE – 21st November 2025*
Due to high demand, this scheme has now closed and all funding has been allocated. Thank you to all our applicants; we hope you enjoy your various meetings. Please check back in future for new funding opportunities.
Applicants must:
Be affiliated with a UK or Ireland institution
Be individual members of Europlanet or be based at an institution with an organisational Europlanet membership
Be ECRs, which Europlanet defines as anyone whose last degree was obtained no more than 7 years ago (not counting parental leave, serious illness, and similar career breaks)
Submit no more than one application each
Be attending a specific conference, meeting or related event in October, November or December 2025
Submit their application before the meeting they plan to attend has taken place.
All funds must be claimed for reimbursement by 31st December 2025.
EPSC-DPS2025: Bringing the Digital Revolution to Direct Exoplanet Imaging with PLACID’s LCD Technology
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release
A game-changing instrument is set to improve the detection and direct imaging of planets outside our Solar System by harnessing the power of liquid crystals. The Programmable Liquid-crystal Active Coronagraphic Imager for the DAG telescope (PLACID) was installed earlier this year at the 4m-diameter telescope of the newly-built Eastern Anatolian Observatory (DAG) observatory in Eastern Turkey. Now in the integration and validation phase, the first on-sky observations of PLACID are expected in the first quarter of 2026.
PLACID, which has been developed by a team of Swiss researchers from the University of Bern in cooperation with the University of Applied Sciences Western Switzerland of Yverdon (HEIG-VD), will join the small club of direct high-contrast imaging facilities in the northern hemisphere. The technology and status of the instrument, as well as the science it will enable, were presented at the recent EPSC-DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki.
Most of the nearly 6000 exoplanets discovered to date have been found using indirect methods, which focus on periodic changes of the host star’s apparent properties to infer the existence of a planet. Direct imaging requires an ‘eclipse machine’, known as a coronagraph, to mask the light of a star and reveal any body orbiting it – planets, discs, or brown dwarfs. To date, only a few dozen exoplanets have been directly imaged, as it is highly challenging to take an actual picture of a dim planet next to its very bright host star. Nonetheless, direct imaging is infinitely valuable for scientists as it can provide unique insights into how planets form and their composition, particularly their atmosphere.
“With recent developments in technology and the construction of increasingly large telescopes, the future of exoplanet detection lies in direct imaging. PLACID is one of the stepping stones towards this future,” said Prof Jonas Kühn of the University of Bern in Switzerland, who leads the PLACID project. “It will revolutionise our approach to coronagraphs and bring them into the digital domain.”
Rather than placing a physical plate very precisely in the light path of a telescope, PLACID uses a Spatial Light Modulator (SLM) that relies on the optical properties of liquid crystals to change the optical path or ‘phase’ of light waves for each pixel across a screen. This allows very complex masks to be created at the click of a button.
“We use SLM screens all the time in every-day devices, such as our phones, TVs or computers. In PLACID, the liquid crystals influence how the light passes through each pixel, so we can display any mask we want, giving us an extreme adaptability,” explained Ruben Tandon, a doctoral candidate at the University of Bern and member of the PLACID team.
PLACID’s programming of advanced masks also gives it the exclusive capacity to do direct imaging of so-called circumbinary planets and proto-planetary discs – the cradles for planet formation – orbiting binary or multiple stars. With a traditional coronagraph, this is very challenging, since the unique and variable orbital configuration of each star system makes it almost impossible to set up plates that can block the light from the multiple stars. Thus, while such stars represent about 50% of all stars in our galaxy, no exoplanet orbiting more than one star has been directly imaged to date.
“With PLACID, we can simply adapt the mask in real time to perfectly block the light of any star systems we choose to observe through the night,” said Tandon, who compiled the catalogue of targets for the instrument. “While we will start by targeting the small number of exoplanets that have already been directly imaged to better understand the instrument behaviour, our next step will be to try to directly image exoplanets orbiting binary stars, which will be a first.”
The PLACID instrument, which has been almost a decade in development at the University of Bern, was assembled in the laboratory facilities of the HEIG-VD in Switzerland. After comprehensive laboratory testing to ensure it would meet the expected performances, the instrument was shipped to Turkey in early 2024 and delivered to the DAG telescope for installation in January 2025.
“As with any novel idea, building PLACID involved some risk, but we thankfully benefitted from the support of the National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) PlanetS and the Division of Space Research and Planetary Science of the University of Bern, who enabled us to do early validation of the technology, before the Türkiye National Observatories (TNO) awarded us the procurement contract. And later, the ERC review panel funded the science exploitation,” said Kühn.
For the instrument performance to be fully harnessed, it also needs to be paired with an Adaptive Optics (AO) system, built by the team of Prof Laurent Jolissaint of HEIG-VD, which will reduce the effects of atmospheric turbulence. The two instruments are in their final stages of installation and will enable PLACID to observe its first targets in the first quarter of 2026.
“We are happy to welcome PLACID. Its capacities, coupled with our 4-meter class telescope, will lead to the first fully-European instrument in the northern hemisphere able to directly image exoplanets,” concluded Derya Öztürk Çetni, the PLACID instrument scientist from TNO.
Further information
Abstract: EPSC-DPS2025-1774. The Programmable Liquid-crystal Active Coronagraphic Imager for the 4-m DAG telescope (PLACID) instrument: Discovery Space and Status. Ruben Tandon, Liurong Lin, Lucas Marquis, Axel Potier, Derya Öztürk Çetni, and Jonas G. Kühn. https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc-dps2025-1774
The PLACID and RACE-GO projects have received funding from the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research, and Innovation (SERI) as a SERI-Funded ERC 2021 Consolidator Grant, project RACE-GO # M822.00084, following the discontinued participation of Switzerland to Horizon Europe. Part of this work has been carried out within the framework of the National Centre of Competence in Research PlanetS supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation under grants 51NF40 182901 and 51NF40 205606.
Contact Ruben Tandon PhD Candidate Physics Institute, Space Research & Planetary Science University of Bern Switzerland ruben.tandon@unibe.ch +41316843290
Prof. Jonas Kühn Assistant Professor Physics Institute, Space Research & Planetary Science University of Bern Switzerland jonas.kuehn@unibe.ch +41316844765
EPSC-DPS2025 Press Office press@europlanet.org
Notes for Editors
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS) The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year will mark the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend.
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSCDPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
Tumbleweed Rover Tests Demonstrate Transformative Technology for Low-Cost Mars Exploration
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release
A swarm of spherical rovers, blown by the wind like tumbleweeds, could enable large-scale and low-cost exploration of the martian surface, according to results presented at the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division for Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS) 2025.
Recent experiments in a state-of-the-art wind tunnel and field tests in a quarry demonstrate that the rovers could be set in motion and navigate over various terrains in conditions analogous to those found on Mars.
Tumbleweed rovers are lightweight, 5-metre-diameter spherical robots designed to harness the power of martian winds for mobility. Swarms of the rovers could spread across the Red Planet, autonomously gathering environmental data and providing an unprecedented, simultaneous view of atmospheric and surface processes from different locations on Mars. A final, stationary phase would involve collapsing the rovers into permanent measurement stations dotted around the surface of Mars, providing long-term scientific measurements and potential infrastructure for future missions.
“Recent wind-tunnel and field campaigns have been a turning point in the Tumbleweed rover’s development,” said James Kingsnorth, Head of Science at Team Tumbleweed, who presented the results at EPSC-DPS2025 in Helsinki. “We now have experimental validation that Tumbleweed rovers could indeed operate and collect scientific data on Mars.”
In July 2025, Team Tumbleweed conducted a week-long experimental campaign, supported by Europlanet, at Aarhus University’s Planetary Environment Facility. Using scaled prototypes with 30-, 40- and 50-centimetre diameters, the team carried out static and dynamic tests in a wind tunnel with a variety of wind speeds and ground surfaces under a low atmospheric pressure of 17 millibars.
Results showed that wind speeds of 9-10 metres per second were sufficient to set the rover in motion over a range of Mars-like terrains including smooth and rough surfaces, sand, pebbles and boulder fields. Onboard instruments successfully recorded data during tumbling and the rover’s behaviour matched fluid-dynamics modelling, validating simulations. The scale-model prototypes were able to climb up a slope of 11.5 degrees in the chamber – equivalent to approximately 30 degrees on Mars – demonstrating that the rover could traverse even unfavourable slopes.
“Experiments with the prototypes in the Aarhus Wind Tunnel have provided big insights into how Tumbleweed rovers would operate on Mars,” said Mário João Carvalho de Pinto Balsemão, Team Tumbleweed’s Mission Scientist, who led the experimental campaign. “The results are conservative, as the weights of the scaled prototypes used in the experiments are exaggerated compared to the real thing, so the threshold wind speeds for setting the rovers rolling could be even less.”
Near-surface winds on Mars are currently not well understood due to the relatively sparse data collection. While data from rovers and landers on the surface show average wind speeds are generally in single digits, wind-generated vibrations recorded by NASA’s Insight mission over more than two martian years, as well as measurements gathered during the flights of the Ingenuity helicopter, show that higher wind speeds can occur near the surface quite frequently.
“Data from Insight suggests that in Mars’s northern hemisphere during summer, daytime wind speeds are characterised by a wide distribution and are positively skewed toward higher wind speeds of around 10 metres per second, and while the nights are calmer, speeds of more 10 metres per second can sometimes be reached,” said Balsemão. “The results from Aarhus support our modelling, which shows that an average Tumbleweed rover – following the daily shifts and day-night cycles of the wind – could travel about 422 kilometres over 100 martian sols, with an average overall speed of about 0.36 kilometres per hour. In favourable conditions, the maximum range could be as much as 2,800 kilometres.”
Back in April, a 2.7-metre-diameter rover prototype, the Tumbleweed Science Testbed, was deployed in field tests in an inactive quarry in Maastricht in the Netherlands. The rover’s modular payload bay carried a suite of off-the-shelf sensors including a camera, a magnetometer, an inertial measurement unit and a GPS. These experiments confirmed that the platform could successfully gather and process environmental data in real time while tumbling over natural terrain.
The organisation behind the rovers, Team Tumbleweed, is an interdisciplinary group of young, entrepreneurial scientists. With main branches in Vienna in Austria and Delft in the Netherlands, Team Tumbleweed brings together people from over 20 countries.
The next steps for the team will include integrating more sophisticated instruments into the Tumbleweed Science Testbed payload, including radiation sensors, soil probes and dust sensors, refining the rover’s dynamics models, and scaling up the platform to higher technology readiness levels (TRLs). A further field campaign will take place in the Atacama Desert, Chile, in November, during which at least two Science Testbed rovers will carry instruments supplied by researchers from external partner organisations and will test swarm coordination strategies in Mars-like environments.
Further Information
Abstract: EPSC-DPS2025-1775. Preliminary Feasibility Assessment of the Tumbleweed Rover Platform and Mission using the AU Planetary Environment Facility
James Kingsnorth, Mário de Pinto Balsemão, Abhimanyu Shanbhag, Luka Pikulić, Jonathan Merrison, Jens Iversen, Cristina Moisuc, Morgan Peterson, and Julian Rothenbuchner.
Abstract: EPSC-DPS2025-1779. A Swarm of Wind-Driven Tumbleweed Rovers for in-situ Mapping of Radiation, Water‑Equivalent Hydrogen and Magnetic Fields on Mars
James Kingsnorth, Mário de Pinto Balsemão, Abhimanyu Shanbhag, Luka Pikulić, Cristina Moisuc, Morgan Peterson, Gergana Bounova, and Julian Rothenbuchner.
Results of a simulation of a swarm of 90 Tumbleweed rovers, with red dots showing their randomised starting positions and blue dots showing their final resting points. Credit: Team Tumbleweed.
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year marked the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With over 1800 participants joining in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 is the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe. https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
EPSC-DPS2025: JWST Reveals Dark Beads and Lopsided Star Patterns in Saturn’s Atmosphere
Joint Press Release of Northumbria University and the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025)
A study of Saturn’s atmospheric structure using data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has revealed complex and mysterious features unseen before on any planet in our Solar System. The results were presented last week by Prof Tom Stallard of Northumbria University, UK, at the EPSC-DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki.
“This opportunity to use JWST was the first time we have ever been able to make such detailed near-infrared observations of Saturn’s aurora and upper atmosphere. The results came as a complete surprise,” said Stallard.
“We anticipated seeing emissions in broad bands at the various levels. Instead, we’ve seen fine-scaled patterns of beads and stars that, despite being separated by huge distances in altitude, may somehow be interconnected – and may also be linked to the famous hexagon deeper in Saturn’s clouds. These features were completely unexpected and, at present, are completely unexplained.”
The international team of researchers, comprising 23 scientists from institutions across the UK, US and France, made the discoveries during a continuous 10-hour observation period on 29 November 2024, as Saturn rotated beneath JWST’s view.
The team focused on detecting infrared emissions by a positively charged molecular form of hydrogen, H3+, which plays a key role in reactions in Saturn’s atmosphere and so can provide valuable insights into the chemical and physical processes at work. JWST’s Near Infrared Spectrograph allowed the team to simultaneously observe H₃⁺ ions from the ionosphere, 1,100 kilometres above Saturn’s nominal surface, and methane molecules in the underlying stratosphere, at an altitude of 600 kilometres.
In the electrically-charged plasma of the ionosphere, the team observed a series of dark, bead-like features embedded in bright auroral halos. These structures remained stable over hours but appeared to drift slowly over longer periods.
Around 500 kilometres lower, in Saturn’s stratosphere, the team discovered an asymmetric star-shaped feature. This unusual structure extended out from Saturn’s north pole towards the equator. Only four of the star’s six arms were visible, with two mysteriously missing, creating a lopsided pattern.
“Saturn’s upper atmosphere has proven incredibly difficult to study with missions and telescope facilities to date due to the extremely weak emissions from this region,” said Stallard. “JWST’s incredible sensitivity has revolutionised our ability to observe these atmospheric layers, revealing structures that are completely unlike anything we’ve seen before on any planet.”
The team mapped the exact locations of the features and found that they overlaid the same region of Saturn at different levels, with the star’s arms appearing to emanate from positions directly above the points of the storm-cloud-level hexagon. This suggests that the processes that are driving the patterns may influence a column stretching right through Saturn’s atmosphere.
“We think that the dark beads may result from complex interactions between Saturn’s magnetosphere and its rotating atmosphere, potentially providing new insights into the energy exchange that drives Saturn’s aurora. The asymmetric star pattern suggests previously unknown atmospheric processes operating in Saturn’s stratosphere, possibly linked to the hexagonal storm pattern observed deeper in Saturn’s atmosphere,” said Stallard.
“Tantalisingly, the darkest beads in the ionosphere appear to line up with the strongest star-arm in the stratosphere, but it’s not clear at this point whether they are actually linked or whether it’s just a coincidence.”
While both features could have significant implications for understanding atmospheric dynamics on gas giant planets, more work is needed to provide explanations for the underlying causes.
The team hopes that additional time may be granted in future to carry out follow-up observations of Saturn with JWST to further explore the features. With the planet at its equinox, which occurs approximately every 15 Earth years, the structures may change dramatically as Saturn’s orientation to the Sun shifts and the northern hemisphere moves into autumn.
“Since neither atmospheric layer can be observed using ground-based telescopes, the need for JWST follow-up observations during this key time of seasonal change on Saturn is pressing,” Stallard added.
Further Information
Abstract: EPSC-DPS2025-817. Tom Stallard, Henrik Melin, Luke Moore, Emma Thomas, Katie Knowles, Paola Tiranti and James O’Donoghue.
The paper JWST/NIRSpec detection of complex structures in Saturn’s sub-auroral ionosphere and stratosphere was published in Geophysical Research Letters on 28 August 2025.
The Saturn research was supported by grants from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), NASA Solar System Workings program, and the European Research Council. The study represents part of JWST’s ongoing revolutionary observations of our solar system’s planets.
Montage of stills from animation showing the dark, bead-like features embedded in bright auroral halos as Saturn rotates beneath JWST’s view. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Stallard et al 2025.
This video of Saturn’s ionosphere highlights the contrast in brightness between JWST’s infrared observations of the aurora and the dim bead features. The aurora itself is relatively weak, almost impossible to image from Earth, needing hours of integration time to observe using ground-based data. However, the auroral features are at least four times brighter than the brightest parts of the dark bead features, so to properly show the hidden features, the aurora are completely saturated. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Stallard et al 2025.
Montage of Star Arms in Saturn’s Stratosphere
Montage of stills from animation showing near infrared emissions in Saturn’s stratosphere, revealing the four star-arm features flowing from the pole towards the equator, as the planet rotates beneath JWST’s view. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Stallard et al 2025.
This video of Saturn’s stratosphere shows a complex and highly surprising star-shaped structure, revealed for the first time by JWST’s unprecedented sensitivity. Four dark bands extend away from the polar region, appearing to make up four out of six arms that align with Saturn’s famous hexagon within the lower atmosphere. At this point, it is unknown why the dark arms are flowing towards the equator, or why two of the arms are missing, but the causes may be associated with the complex bead structures observed many hundreds of kilometres above in the ionosphere. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Stallard et al 2025.
Dark Beads and Star Arms in Saturn’s Upper Atmosphere
Detections of near infrared emissions in Saturn’s ionosphere (right) show dark bead-like features embedded within bright aurora. In the stratosphere (left), 500 kilometres below, a lopsided star-pattern extends towards the equator. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Stallard et al 2025.
Dark Beads and Star Arms in Saturn’s Upper Atmosphere
This video shows how the structures observed in Saturn’s ionosphere and stratosphere relate to one another. Starting with the aurora at 1100 km, the brightness is increased to reveal the dark bead-like features. The video then fades into the star-arm shapes within the underlying 600 km layer. The darkest beads in the ionosphere appear to line up with the strongest arm underneath it, but it is not clear if this is co-incidental, or if it suggests coupling between Saturn’s lowest and highest layers of the atmosphere. Credit: NASA/ESA/CSA/Stallard et al 2025.
Notes for Editors
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year marks the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With over 1800 participants joining in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 is the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe. https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
EPSC-DPS2025: Mars’s Chilly North Polar Vortex Creates a Seasonal Ozone Layer
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release
A rare glimpse into the wintry conditions of Mars’s north polar vortex has shown that temperatures inside the vortex are far colder than outside, and that the permanent darkness that winter brings to the martian north pole facilitates a surge in ozone in the atmosphere.
“The atmosphere inside the polar vortex, from near the surface to about 30 kilometres high, is characterised by extreme cold temperatures, about 40 degrees Celsius colder than outside the vortex,” said Dr Kevin Olsen of the University of Oxford, who presented the results at the EPSC-DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki last week.
At such frigid temperatures, what little water vapour there is in the atmosphere freezes out and is deposited onto the ice cap, but this leads to consequences for ozone in the vortex. Ordinarily ozone is destroyed by reacting with molecules produced when ultraviolet sunlight breaks down water vapour. However, with all the water vapour gone, there’s nothing for the ozone to react with. Instead, ozone is able to accumulate within the vortex.
“Ozone is a very important gas on Mars – it’s a very reactive form of oxygen and tells us how fast chemistry is happening in the atmosphere,” said Olsen. “By understanding how much ozone there is and how variable it is, we know more about how the atmosphere changed over time, and even whether Mars once had a protective ozone layer like on Earth.”
The European Space Agency’s ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover, which is currently scheduled to launch in 2028, will search for evidence of past life on Mars. The possibility that Mars once had an ozone layer protecting the planet’s surface from the deadly influx of ultraviolet radiation from space would boost the chances that life could have survived on Mars billions of years ago substantially.
How Mars’s Polar Vortex Forms
The polar vortex is a consequence of Mars’s seasons, which occur because the Red Planet’s axis is tilted at an angle of 25.2 degrees. Just like on Earth, the end of northern summer sees an atmospheric vortex develop over Mars’s north pole and last through to the spring.
On Earth the polar vortex can sometimes become unstable, lose its shape and descend southwards, bringing colder weather to the mid-latitudes. The same can happen to Mars’s polar vortex, and in doing so it provides an opportunity to probe its interior.
“Because winters at Mars’s north pole experience total darkness, like on Earth, they are very hard to study,” says Olsen. “By being able to measure the vortex and determine whether our observations are inside or outside of the dark vortex, we can really tell what is going on.”
Probing the Vortex
Olsen works with ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter that is in orbit around Mars. In particular, the spacecraft’s Atmospheric Chemistry Suite (ACS) studies Mars’s atmosphere by gazing at the Red Planet’s limb when the Sun is on the other side of the planet and is shining through the atmosphere. The wavelengths at which the sunlight is absorbed give away which molecules are present in the atmosphere and how high above the surface they are.
However, this technique doesn’t work during the total darkness of martian winter when the Sun doesn’t rise over the north pole. The only opportunities to glimpse inside the vortex are when it loses its circular shape but, to know exactly when and where this is happening, requires additional data.
For this, Olsen turned to the Mars Climate Sounder instrument on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to measure the extent of the vortex via temperature measurements.
“We looked for a sudden drop in temperature – a sure sign of being inside the vortex,” said Olsen. “Comparing the ACS observations with the results from the Mars Climate Sounder shows clear differences in the atmosphere inside the vortex compared to outside. This is a fascinating opportunity to learn more about martian atmosphere chemistry and how conditions change during the polar night to allow ozone to build up.”
Further information
EPSC-DPS2025-1438 What Goes On Inside the Mars North Polar Vortex?
Kevin Olsen, Bethan Gregory, Franck Montmessin, Lucio Baggio, Franck Lefèvre, Oleg Korablev, Alexander Trokhimovsky, Anna Federova, Denius Belyaev, Juan Alday and Armin Kleinböhl, https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc-dps2025-1438
Images
A schematic of temperature measurements shows how it is 40 degrees Celsius colder inside the north polar vortex (indicated by the yellow line) compared to outside the vortex. Image credit: Kevin Olsen (University of Oxford) et al.
A view of the north pole of Mars, created by taking images as seen by the European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft and applying topographic data from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter that was on board NASA’s now defunct Mars Global Surveyor mission. Image credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/NASA MGS MOLA Science Team.
Dr Kevin Olsen, University of Oxford kevin.olsen@physics.ox.ac.uk
EPSC-DPS2025 Press Office press@europlanet.org
Notes for Editors
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year marks the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With over 1800 participants joining in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 is the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe. https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
EPSC-DPS2025: Planets Without Plate Tectonics and too Little Carbon Dioxide Could Mean that Technological Alien Life is Rare
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release
The closest technological species to us in the Milky Way galaxy could be 33,000 light years away and their civilisation would have to be at least 280,000 years, and possibly millions of years, old if they are to exist at the same time that we do, according to new research presented at the EPSC–DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki this week.
These numbers are reflective of the strong odds against finding Earth-like worlds with plate tectonics and a nitrogen-oxygen dominated atmosphere with just the right amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide.
By considering these factors, the possibility for the success of SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) seems bleak, according to Dr Manuel Scherf and Professor Helmut Lammer of the Space Research Institute at the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Graz.
“Extraterrestrial intelligences – ETIs – in our galaxy are probably pretty rare,” says Scherf.
The more carbon dioxide a planet has in its atmosphere, the longer it can sustain a biosphere and photosynthesis for, and prevent the atmosphere from escaping into space, but it’s a careful balance: too much carbon dioxide and it can lead to a runaway greenhouse effect, or render the atmosphere too toxic for life. Plate tectonics regulate the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere as part of the carbon-silicate cycle, and so a habitable planet requires plate tectonics. Gradually, though, the carbon dioxide that is drawn out of the atmosphere gets locked away in rocks rather than recycled.
“At some point enough carbon dioxide will be drawn from the atmosphere so that photosynthesis will stop working,” says Scherf. “For the Earth, that’s expected to happen in about 200 million to roughly one billion years.”
Earth’s atmosphere is dominated by nitrogen (78 per cent) and oxygen (21 per cent), but it also contains trace gases including carbon dioxide (0.042 per cent). Scherf and Lammer consider what would happen on a planet with ten per cent carbon dioxide (such a planet could avoid a runaway greenhouse if it is further from its sun, or its sun is younger and less luminous) and find that its biosphere could be maintained for 4.2 billion years. Alternatively, an atmosphere with one-per-cent carbon dioxide would maintain a biosphere for a maximum of 3.1 billion years.
These worlds would also need no less than 18 per cent oxygen. Not only is more oxygen needed by larger, complex animals, but previous studies have shown that if oxygen levels fall below this then there is not enough free oxygen to enable open-air combustion. Without fire the smelting of metal would be unfeasible and a technological civilisation would be impossible.
Scherf and Lammer then contrasted these biosphere lifespans with the amount of time it takes for technological life to evolve, which on Earth was 4.5 billion years, and the possible lifetime of a technological species. This is important because the longer their species survives, the greater the chance that they will exist at the same time that we do.
Combining all these factors is what led Scherf and Lammer to the conclusion that technological species living on a planet with 10 per cent carbon dioxide would have to survive for at least 280,000 years for there to even be one other civilisation in the galaxy at the same time we are.
“For ten civilisations to exist at the same time as ours, the average lifetime must be above 10 million years,” says Scherf. “The numbers of ETIs are pretty low and depend strongly upon the lifetime of a civilisation.”
This means that if we do detect an ETI, it is almost certainly going to be much older than humanity.
It’s these numbers that also lead to the estimate that the next closest technological civilisation is about 33,000 light years away. Our Sun is about 27,000 light years from the galactic centre, which means that the next closest technological civilisation to our own could be on the other side of the Milky Way.
These numbers are not absolutes – Scherf points out that there are other factors that should be included, such as the origin of life, the origin of photosynthesis, the origin of multi-cellular life and the frequency with which intelligent life develops technology, but they cannot be quantified at present. If each of these factors has a high probability, then ETIs might not be as rare. If each of these factors has a low probability, then a more pessimistic outlook is required.
Nevertheless, Scherf strongly believes that SETI should continue the search.
“Although ETIs might be rare there is only one way to really find out and that is by searching for it,” says Scherf. “If these searches find nothing, it makes our theory more likely, and if SETI does find something, then it will be one of the biggest scientific breakthroughs ever achieved as we would know that we are not alone in the Universe.”
Further information
EPSC-DPS2025 1512 How Common Are Biological ETIs in the Galaxy?
An artist’s impression of our Milky Way Galaxy, showing the location of the Sun. Our Solar System is about 27,000 light years from the centre of the galaxy. The nearest technological species could be 33,000 light years away. Image credit: NASA/JPL–Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC–Caltech).
This graph shows the maximum number of ETIs presently existing in the Milky Way. The solid orange line describes the scenario of planets with nitrogen–oxygen atmospheres with 10 per cent carbon dioxide. In this case the average lifetime of a civilization must be at least 280,000 years for a second civilization to exist in the Milky Way. Changing the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide produces different results. Image credit: Manuel Scherf and Helmut Lammer.
Dr Manuel Scherf Austrian Academy of Sciences manuel.scherf@oeaw.ac.at
EPSC-DPS2025 Press Office press@europlanet.org
Notes for Editors
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year will mark the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With over 1800 participants joining in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 is the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe. https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
How Interstellar Objects Similar to 3I/ATLAS Could Jump-Start Planet Formation Around Infant Stars
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release
Interstellar objects like 3I/ATLAS that have been captured in planet-forming discs around young stars could become the seeds of giant planets, bypassing a hurdle that theoretical models have previously been unable to explain.
Interstellar objects are asteroid- and comet-like bodies that have been ejected from their home system and now wander through interstellar space, occasionally encountering other star systems. Since 2017 astronomers have detected three interstellar objects passing through our Solar System: 1I/’Oumuamua, 2I/Borisov and most recently 3I/ATLAS, discovered in summer 2025.
However, interstellar objects may be more influential than they at first appear to be, says Professor Susanne Pfalzner of Forschungszentrum Jülich in Germany, who presents her new findings on the subject at this week’s EPSC-DPS2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki.
“Interstellar objects may be able to jump start planet formation, in particular around higher-mass stars,” said Pfalzner.
Planets form in dusty discs around young stars through a process of accretion, which according to theory involves smaller particles come together to form slightly larger objects, and so on until planet-sized bodies have assembled. However, theorists struggle to explain how anything larger than a metre forms through accretion in the hurly-burly of a planet-forming disc around a young star – in computer simulations, boulders either bounce off each other or shatter when they collide rather than sticking together.
Interstellar objects can potentially bypass this problem. Pfalzner’s models show how the dusty planet-forming disc around each young star could gravitationally capture millions of interstellar objects the size of 1I/’Oumuamua, which was estimated to be around 100 metres long.
“Interstellar space would deliver ready-made seeds for the formation of the next generation of planets,” said Pfalzner.
If interstellar objects can act as the seeds of planets, it also solves another mystery. Gas giant planets like Jupiter are rare around the smallest, coolest stars, which astronomers refer to as ‘M dwarfs’. They are more commonly found around more massive stars similar to the Sun. The problem, though, is that planet-forming discs around Sun-like stars have a lifetime of about two million years before dissipating and it’s very challenging to form to form gas giant planets on such a short timescale. However, if captured interstellar objects are present as seeds onto which more material can accrete, it speeds the process of planet formation up and giant planets can form in the lifetime of the disc.
“Higher-mass stars are more efficient in capturing interstellar objects in their discs,” said Pfalzner. “Therefore, interstellar object-seeded planet formation should be more efficient around these stars, providing a fast way to form giant planets. And, their fast formation is exactly what we have observed.”
Pfalzner says that her next steps are to model the success rate of these captured interstellar objects – investigating how many of the millions of captured interstellar objects are able to form planetary bodies, and whether they are captured evenly across a planet-forming disc, or whether they are concentrated in certain areas that could become hotspots for planet-birth.
Further information
EPSC-DPS2025-1927, Interstellar Objects Function as Seeds for Planet Formation Predominantly Around High-Mass Stars
Interstellar object 3I/ATLAS imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope. Could similar objects be the seeds of new planets around young stars? Image credit: NASA/ESA/David Jewitt (UCLA). Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI).
Professor Susanne Pfalzner Jülich Supercomputing Center, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Germany s.pfalzner@fz-juelich.de
EPSC-DPS2025 Press Office press@europlanet.org
Notes for Editors
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year will mark the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With over 1800 participants joining in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 is the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe. https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
EPSC-DPS2025: Artificial intelligence drives the discovery of new exoplanets
Researchers from the University of Bern have developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) model capable of predicting the architecture of planetary systems and subsequently inferring the presence of yet-to-be-discovered planets. They use the so-called Transformer architecture which is the basis of the Large Language Models powering tools like the recently launched Swiss model Apertus or chatbots such as ChatGPT. The findings have been presented this week at the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division for Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS) 2025 in Helsinki.
For more than two decades, researchers at the University of Bern have developed the so-called ‘Bern model’, a suite of computer programs that can numerically simulate the formation of planetary systems, thus shedding light on system architecture. These models are, however, very complex: each simulation from the Bern model can take a few days to a few weeks to be computed using modern super-computers.
Using modern AI techniques trained on the Bern model data, Prof. Yann Alibert and Sara Marques from the NCCR PlanetS and the Center for Space and Habitability of the University of Bern, and Dr. Jeanne Davoult, former PhD student of the University of Bern and now researcher at the DLR in Berlin, have developed an AI model capable of computing the formation of planetary systems in seconds, a million times faster than traditional computations. The study has just been published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics and was also presented last week at the ‘Fast Machine Learning for Science’ conference in Zurich.
Knowing where to observe
Present day and near future observational facilities will soon be able to observe and characterize extrasolar planets similar to the Earth, while they so far have been limited to planets closer to their host stars. “Earth-like planet detection requires large amount of observing time. In this context, knowing where to observe is very important to save very costly observation time”, explains Yann Alibert, first author of the study.
In order to prioritize between different possible targets, one can use the observations of easier-to-observe other planets in the same systems. This, however, requires a profound understanding of the so-called architecture of a system: how the properties (orbital position, mass, etc.) of one planet in a system relate to the properties of other planets in the same system.
Inspired by Large Language Models
The team trained its AI model on tens of thousands of numerical simulations of planetary system formation also developed at the University of Bern. “The new AI model can be used to predict the presence and properties of yet-to-be-discovered additional planets in already known extrasolar planetary systems”, as Sara Marques, PhD student at the University of Bern, points out.
In an experiment presented in the current study, the authors showed that in a real three-planet system, the properties of the second and third planet can be inferred from the properties of the innermost planet of the system. Alibert explains: “This approach can be used to generate new planetary systems: Knowing a single planet in a system, we can predict the rest of the planets for systems of three planets with our model.” Alibert continues: “The key in our study was to realize that planetary systems can be seen as sequences of planets, exactly as sentences are sequences of words. This triggered the idea of using the AI methods from Large Language Models, used for instance by chatbots such as ChatGPT, to build our AI model.”
The authors used the so-called ‘Transformer architecture’ introduced in the field in 2017 to create a generative model that can produce sequences of planets orbiting the same stars. “The Large Language Models predict the rest of a sentence based on the sequence created by the first few words. In our case, we predict the sequence of outer planets in a system, based on the first inner ones,” further explains Marques.
“This new study builds upon a previous AI model encouraging results,” points out Dr. Jeanne Davoult, former student in the NCCR PlanetS, now working at the DLR Berlin. “In the last model, based on the inner planet of a system, we were predicting the probability of an Earth-like planet to be in the system. Keeping the analogy with language models, it was like predicting the presence of a specific word in a sentence, based on its beginning. In this new study, we predict all the rest of the sentence and not only the probability of a single word.”
“The results of the generative AI model were so accurate that we were very skeptical at first,” remembers Marques. A large range of tests were made by the researchers, in which they used machine learning classifiers, and they submitted their results to other scientists. “In the end, they all concluded the same: generated planetary systems are virtually indistinguishable from numerical simulations,” continues Marques.
Preparing for the PLATO mission and others
Scheduled to be launched in 2026, the ESA PLATO mission will discover thousands of planetary systems, with the planet closest to the star being, in general, the first to be observed. Some of these systems could harbor planets like the Earth, yet these will likely be discovered by ground-based telescope using other observations later.
“Our new AI model could be used to prioritize the observations of these systems by telescope, enhancing the probability to find Earth twins”, says Davoult. In the coming years, the models will be extended to predict more properties of planets, such as their composition or habitability. “When I was hired as a postdoc in 2001, I initiated numerical simulations of planetary systems at the University of Bern. This new AI model is the natural continuation of this Bernese expertise”, says Alibert. “AI is now present in everyone’s life, I am convinced it will more and more be key in scientific discoveries, in planetary sciences and elsewhere”, he concludes.
The generative AI model of the University of Bern is able to create synthetic planetary systems. Credit: UniBE / NCCR PlanetS, Illustration: Thibaut Roger.
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year will mark the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With around 1800 participants expected to join in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 will be the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe.
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
Bern Model of Planet Formation and Evolution
Statements can be made about how a planet was formed and how it has evolved using the “Bern Model of Planet Formation and Evolution”. The Bern model has been continuously developed at the University of Bern since 2001. Insights into the manifold processes involved in the formation and evolution of planets are integrated into the model. These are, for example, sub models of accretion (growth of a planet’s core) or of how planets interact gravitationally and influence each other, and of processes in the protoplanetary disks in which planets are formed. The model is also used to create so-called population syntheses, which show how often planets form in a protoplanetary disk under certain conditions.
Bernese space exploration
With the world’s elite since the first moon landingWhen the second man, “Buzz” Aldrin, stepped out of the lunar module on July 21, 1969, the first task he did was to set up the Bernese Solar Wind Composition experiment (SWC) also known as the “solar wind sail” by planting it in the ground of the moon, even before the American flag. This experiment, which was planned, built and the results analyzed by Prof. Dr. Johannes Geiss and his team from the Physics Institute of the University of Bern, was the first great highlight in the history of Bernese space exploration.Ever since Bernese space exploration has been among the world’s elite, and the University of Bern has been participating in space missions of the major space organizations, such as ESA, NASA, and JAXA. With CHEOPS the University of Bern shares responsibility with ESA for a whole mission. In addition, Bernese researchers are among the world leaders when it comes to models and simulations of the formation and development of planets.The successful work of the Space Research and Planetary Sciences Division (WP) from the Physics Institute of the University of Bern was consolidated by the foundation of a university competence center, the Center for Space and Habitability (CSH). The Swiss National Fund also awarded the University of Bern the National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) PlanetS, which it manages together with the University of Geneva.
We are devastated by the news that Riccardo Pozzobon was involved in a tragic accident while on a research trip to the Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska, on 2 September 2025.
Riccardo graduated in Geology and Technical Geology in Padua in 2010 and, after obtaining his PhD, specialised in the field of planetary geology.
A talented and inspirational researcher, Riccardo participated in numerous international missions, published significant studies (including discoveries on lunar lava tubes) and was a lecturer in the Digital Geological Mapping at the University of Padova. He was also an instructor in the PANGEA training course for astronauts at the European Space Agency.
For Europlanet, he was a key driver of the Geological Mapping (GMAP) activity and, in particular, the Geological Mapping Winter School. The online Winter School, established during Covid in 2021, has grown to attract over 750 participants in 2025 and is a reflection of Riccardo’s commitment to curiosity, collaboration and community building.
He will be very much missed.
Our thoughts are with Riccardo’s family, particularly his wife and young son. To support them in this unimaginably difficult time, efforts are underway by friends and colleagues at the University of Padova to set up a donation fund.
There will be book of condolence at the main Europlanet stand at EPSC-DPS2025 from 08-12 September, which we invite Riccardo’s friends and colleagues to sign. Alternatively, please share memories of him or pictures via the form below, which we will collate and send with the book to the family.
We will add here details of pages with further information about Riccardo and ways to support his family as they become available.
Riccardo Pozzobon. Credit: ESA.Riccardo Pozzobon creating a 3D model of samples collected by Luca Parmitano one hour previously on the ISS. Credit: AP Rossi.Riccardo Pozzobon (left) during an ESA PANGEA training course. Credit: AP Rossi.Riccardo Pozzobon during a field trip. Credit: University of Padova.Riccardo Pozzobon (right) during an ESA PANGEA-X training course in 2017. Credit: AP Rossi.
Earlier in 2025, the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Planetenforschung (German Society for Planetary Research) was established. The new association is organising a splinter meeting at EPSC-DPS2025 to advertise its activites and to discuss its relationship and potential collaboration with the Europlanet Germany Regional Hub.
The position of Europlanet Germany Regional Hub is currently vacant, as are some other roles within the Committee. People who are interested in taking on the role of Hub Chair, other roles, or becoming involved in other ways, are invited to attend the EPSC-DPS2025 Splinter meeting at Finlandia Hall on Wednesday, September 2025 from 12:45–13:45 (EEST) in Room Triton (Room 24).
Tim Lichtenberg, Benoit Carry and Jean Schneider Honoured by New Europlanet Career Medals
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release.
Europlanet has announced the winners of its inaugural Career Medals, which are designed to honour outstanding contributions from planetary scientists at three stages of their careers.
Dr Tim Lichtenberg is awarded the Europlanet Early-Career Medal in recognition of an interdisciplinary approach that has led to significant advances in the understanding of planetary formation and exoplanet evolution. Lichtenberg’s work has shed light on the influence of radioactive elements on early planetary heating, the distribution of water and other volatile materials in planetary systems, and how planets evolve to become habitable.
Dr Benoit Carry is awarded the Europlanet Mid-Career Medal for his work to characterise the internal structures and compositions of asteroids and planetary small bodies. Carry’s research has given critical insights into the evolution of the early Solar System, as well as making an important contribution to planetary defence efforts and to open science.
Prof Jean Schneider is awarded the Europlanet Lifetime Achievement Medal for his role as one of the ‘architects’ of modern planetary sciences. In addition to pioneering key methodologies for detecting and characterising exoplanets, including transit photometry and transmission spectroscopy, Schneider founded the Encyclopaedia of Exoplanetary Systems, which for thirty years has been a cornerstone resource for the international community.
Noah Jäggi, Chair of the Medal Award Committee said, ‘With this first set of Europlanet Career Medals, we are delighted to be able to recognise the contributions of three individuals who have had such a profound impact, not just on planetary science, but on our whole community. The achievements of our inaugural medallists demonstrate that, at each stage of a career, scientists can make a substantial difference to the field in which they work and to the colleagues that work alongside them. We are proud to honour these truly deserving recipients.’
The awards will be presented next week at the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) 2025, which will take place at Finlandia Hall, Helsinki, Finland, from 7-12 September.
Europlanet Early-Career Medal Winner, Tim Lichtenberg
Tim Lichtenberg.
Tim Lichtenberg works as Assistant Professor at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute of the University of Groningen, where he leads the Forming Worlds Lab. His research bridges geochemistry, geophysics, climate science and exoplanet astronomy, and explores how factors like magma ocean longevity, the balance between oxidation and reduction processes, and core-mantle segregation can influence exoplanetary atmospheres and give insights into planetary evolution and habitability.
Lichtenberg proposed that the presence of aluminium-26 (26Al) during planet formation can heat and dry out embryonic planets. This theory could explain why planetary systems like our Solar System form largely dry terrestrial planets, contrasting with those in which Earth-mass exoplanets become water-rich ocean worlds. These theoretical insights have since been supported by observations of protoplanetary disks, analysis of stellar remnants that have been polluted by planetary debris, as well as evidence from meteorites formed very early in the Solar System’s history. These findings directly impact our understanding of the origin and distribution of long-lived atmospheres on terrestrial exoplanets.
Beyond his scientific achievements, Lichtenberg has shown leadership in community-building, promoting inclusive and team-spirited work environments and open science. He plays key roles in major international initiatives, including the Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE) project, several James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) programmes, and the interdisciplinary Rocky Worlds meeting series.
Benoit Carry, of the Lagrange laboratory of the Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur (OCA), uses observational and theoretical approaches for understanding the distribution and the compositional diversity of small bodies in planetary systems. His work in interpreting data from major space missions, such as Gaia and Euclid, has been pivotal in advancing our understanding of the formation of the asteroid belt and the evolution of the Solar System.
Carry’s research has enabled more precise asteroid mass determinations, revealing key properties of asteroid interiors and substantially improving the accuracy of threat assessments for potentially hazardous asteroids. His collaborative work on compositional mapping of the asteroid belt has shaped current models of planetary migration and asteroid distribution. As co-chair of the ESA HERA mission’s Working Group on ground-based observations of Didymos, the target of the NASA DART and ESA HERA missions, he has taken a leading role in planning and interpreting asteroid deflection observations that will be vital for future planetary defence efforts.
Alongside the scientific impact of his work, Carry is committed to open science and has developed critical infrastructure for the planetary science community, including tools that enable the real-time classification of astronomical alerts and services that provide comprehensive data on over a million asteroids and dwarf planets.
The Europlanet Mid-Career Medal continues to honour the memory and legacy of the Italian scientist, Paolo Farinella (1953-2000), in whose name the Farinella Prize was awarded from 2011-2024.
Europlanet Lifetime Achievement Winner, Jean Schnieder
Jean Schneider.
Jean Schneider is Emeritus Researcher at the Observatoire de Paris-Meudon. Nearly a decade before the first observation of an exoplanet, Schneider laid the theoretical groundwork for identifying exoplanets through transit photometry. Missions such as CoRoT, Kepler, and TESS have all built on these foundations, leading to the detection of thousands of new worlds, including CoRoT-7b, the first super-Earth with a measured radius.
In 1994, Schneider published the first work proposing transmission spectroscopy, a method of detecting the molecular fingerprints of gases on extrasolar planets by analysing light filtered through the atmospheres of planets passing in front of their host stars. This technique, used on JWST and Hubble data and underpinning the upcoming ESA Ariel mission, has characterised the atmospheres of around 100 exoplanets to date and may help ultimately to answer the question of whether planets other than Earth might harbour life. Schneider also pioneered methodologies for detecting planets around binary stars and exomoons, pushing the frontiers of what could potentially be observed.
Several months before the discovery of 51 Pegasi b in 1995, Schneider created the Encyclopaedia of Exoplanetary Systems, which today includes comprehensive information on over 7,600 planets orbiting other stars and is a unique resource for research, teaching and public outreach around the world.
Throughout his career, Professor Schneider has shown a commitment to building the international collaborations and institutional frameworks required to support the advancement of planetary sciences, serving in many leadership roles for actions, working groups and steering committees at CNRS, ESO and the IAU.
The Europlanet Medals, launched in 2025, honour outstanding contributions to scientific excellence, community building, and outreach from individuals at three different stages of their scientific careers, covering the subjects addressed by the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC):
Terrestrial Planets
Outer Planet Systems
Missions, Instrumentation, Techniques, Modelling
Small Bodies (comets, KBOs, rings, asteroids, meteorites, dust)
Exoplanets, Origins of Planetary Systems and Astrobiology
The categories are based on the scientific age of a researcher at time of nomination, which is calculated from the year of the last degree in scientific education (MSc, PhD) without counting parental leave, health leave, or time working primarily outside science. Each of the inaugural Europlanet Medal winners receives a plaque and a registration waiver for the EPSC-DPS 2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki, where they will give a medal lecture.
Images
Tim Lichtenberg. Credit: T Lichtenberg/U. Groningen.
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year will mark the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend.
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
The EPEC network is organised by early career researchers, for early career researchers, and includes volunteers from across the global Europlanet community. EPEC strives to form a strong network of early careers by organising events and creating a platform for early careers to engage with the wider scientific community.
EPEC is led by two Co-Chairs, whose duty is to coordinate EPEC’s events and activities, complete periodic reports on ongoing activities, and liaise with Europlanet’s Executive Board and Executive Office. You will be the primary point of call for EPEC queries about joining, membership, activities and events for both committee and members. EPEC’s Co-Chairs play a crucial role in coordinating the community and its activities, making key decisions to benefit the EPEC network as a whole, encouraging new and innovative ideas and actively expanding the community.
EPEC’s Co-Chairs are responsible for:
Communications:
Acting as a central contact node within EPEC and directing people through the network
Managing and posting consistently on social media
Liaising with other EPEC members and Europlanet representatives via email
Creating and updating EPEC sections of the Europlanet website
Building relationships with other early career networks, like AbGradE
Operating a shared email inbox and participating proactively in email exchanges relating to EPEC
Consistent presence on social media, particularly on Discord
Coordinating with other EPEC members to stay up-to-date with new and existing EPEC activities
Reporting to the Europlanet Executive Board and providing input for Europlanet’s annual report
Representing EPEC at events: academic conferences, webinars, outreach presentations etc.
Gathering feedback from participants after events like EPEC Annual Week and EPEC @ EPSC.
EPEC is looking for one elected Committee Co-Chair for the next term to help sustain the Committee activities. The term of the elected EPEC Committee Co-Chair will be two years with an option to extend for an additional year. Theexpected time commitment of the elected EPEC Chair is approximately two hours per week, with increased commitment expected during EPEC Annual Week and around EPSC.
This is a great opportunity to join a vibrant community of early career researchers, learn valuable leadership skills and work closely with another experienced Co-Chair to help each other make the most of the experience. Europlanet is passionate about providing a supportive environment and a great platform for raising the profile of its early career members.
Eligibility to apply:
To be eligible for this position, you must meet the following requirements:
You must be a Europlanet member;
Leadership: In working with our diverse community, you must ensure that all points of view are heard and respected. If needed, both Co-Chairs must be able to facilitate discussions and make decisions in the best interests of the community;
Availability on Discord: Europlanet and EPEC use Discord as our main platform for brainstorming, community-building and exchange. Please ensure that you engage as consistently and proactively as possible;
You must be an early-career planetary scientist and/or space professional whose last degree (e.g. MSc or PhD) was obtained a maximum of 7 years ago (excluding parental leave, serious illness and similar delays).
We encourage applications from a diverse early career community (undergraduates, graduates, doctoral researchers and postdocs).
Jessie Hogan (The Open University, UK) and Nimisha Verma (DLR, Germany), Co-Chairs of the Europlanet Early Career (EPEC) Network, give a status update and describe future plans to expand EPEC’s community and activities.
MoonIndex: A Tool to Democratise Prospecting for Minerals on the Moon
Javier Eduardo Suárez Valencia of the University of Padova (Italy) reports how Europlanet’s development of an open-source tool to study the mineralogy of the Moon has led to the discovery of new lunar features.
The Insiders’ Guide to Industry Engagement
Anita Heward, Editor of the Europlanet Magazine, introduces a special focus on industry and the importance of academia-industrial links for the planetary science community.
Planetary Perspectives: Knowledge Transfer
In this edition of Planetary Perspectives, Geraint (Taff) Morgan shares insights on working with industry and knowledge transfer.
Climbing the Mountain of Knowledge Transfer
Elena Benedetto (University of Geneva/NCCR PlanetS, Switzerland) explores how the NCCR PlanetS Technology and Innovation Platform (TIP) has helped shape innovation, industry relations and instrumentation development for the Swiss community of planetary sciences.
Mauve: An Ultraviolet Trailblazer for Commercial Science Satellites Made in Europe
Yoga Barrathwaj Raman Mohan and the team at Blue Skies Space (UK and Italy) describe how the company is taking a new approach to delivering data from science satellites to the global science community.
A Laboratory’s Journey into Space
Mihály Veres, former CEO of Isotoptech, describes how the development of a company to provide research and development, manufacturing and laboratory measurement services has supported research activities from nuclear power to the heart of our Solar System.
Tumbleweed Rovers – A New Paradigm of Martian Exploration
James Kingsnorth, Head of Science at Team Tumbleweed (Netherlands), describes how technological innovation by a startup could drive large-scale, low-cost exploration of the Red Planet.
Spacetek Technology: From Academia to Industrial Innovation
Maximilian Rothenberger, Chief Executive Officer (CEO)/Head of Sales and Jürg Jost, Chief Technology Officer (CTO)/Co-Founder of Spacetek Technology AG (Switzerland), describe how a university spin-out has become a leading innovator in both industrial and space technologies.
Commkit – Challenge: Inspire the Next Generation
In his column on science communication, Thibaut Roger (University of Bern/NCCR PlanetS, Switzerland) discusses how competitions and challenges can link education, outreach and industry.
The Last Word – Shaping Our Planetary Identity
Stavro Lambrov Ivanovski, Vice President of Europlanet, reflects on two decades of activities and the road ahead for Europlanet.
Europlanet 2024 RI has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149.
Europlanet AISBL (Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif – 0800.634.634) is hosted by the Department of Planetary Atmospheres of the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Avenue Circulaire 3, B-1180 Brussels, Belgium.
