Award Ceremony, Faculty of Science cancelled

Due to the current COVID-19 situation, the board of the Faculty of Science has decided to cancel the graduation ceremony of the Faculty of Science of May 31, 2021.

Special operation

Due to the current situation, the Dean's Office has reduced counter service until further notice.

Glaciers and enigmatic stone stripes in the Ethiopian Highlands

Although past temperature variations in the tropics are of great importance to understanding the global climate system, little is known about their extent and chronological course. Researchers under the leadership of the University of Bern have now been able to demonstrate strong local cooling in the tropics during the last glacial period on the basis of glacier fluctuations and large stone stripes in the Ethiopian Highlands.

How the habitability of exoplanets is influenced by their rocks

The weathering of silicate rocks plays an important role to keep the climate on Earth clement. Scientists led by the University of Bern and the Swiss national center of competence in research (NCCR) PlanetS, investigated the general principles of this process. Their results could influence how we interpret the signals from distant worlds – including such that may hint towards life.

Volcanoes might light up the night sky of this planet

Until now, researchers have found no evidence of global tectonic activity on planets outside our solar system. Under the leadership of the University of Bern and the National Center of Competence in Research NCCR PlanetS, scientists have now found that the material inside planet LHS 3844b flows from one hemisphere to the other and could be responsible for numerous volcanic eruptions on one side of the planet.

CHEOPS finds unique planetary system

The CHEOPS space telescope detects six planets orbiting the star TOI-178. Five of the planets are in a harmonic rhythm despite very different compositions – a novelty. CHEOPS is a joint mission by the European Space Agency (ESA) and Switzerland, under the aegis of the University of Bern in collaboration with the University of Geneva.

TRAPPIST-1's 7 Rocky Planets May Be Made of Similar Stuff

The TRAPPIST-1 star is home to the largest batch of roughly Earth-size planets ever found outside our solar system. An international study involving researchers from the Universities of Bern, Geneva and Zurich now shows that the exoplanets have remarkably similar densities, which provides clues about their composition.

One-year launch anniversary of CHEOPS

In its first year in orbit, the CHEOPS space telescope has already revealed details of one of the most extreme exoplanets and showed its maneuverability by evading space debris. CHEOPS is a joint mission by the European Space Agency (ESA) and Switzerland, under the aegis of the University of Bern in collaboration with the University of Geneva.

A pair of lonely planet-like objects born like stars

An international research team led by the University of Bern has discovered an exotic binary system composed of two young planet-like objects, orbiting around each other from a very large distance. Although these objects look like giant exoplanets, they formed in the same way as stars, proving that the mechanisms driving star formation can produce rogue worlds in unusual systems deprived of a Sun.

EU-funded research grants for two researchers from Bern

Two researchers from the University of Bern will receive an ERC Consolidator Grant this year. The coveted European Research Council (ERC) grants go to physicist Akitaka Ariga and geographer Chinwe Ifejika Speranza.

The Swiss Alps continue to rise

An international team of geologists, headed by members of the University of Bern, has shown for the first time that the Swiss Alps are being lifted faster than they are being lowered through erosion – and are thus growing even higher. To do this, the researchers quantified the erosion of the Alps with the help of isotopes measured in the sand of more than 350 rivers throughout the European Alps. These isotopes are formed by cosmic rays and bear information on the Earth’s surface erosion.

Bernese Researchers on Highly Cited Researchers 2020 List

Researchers at the University of Bern are among the most cited scientists in the world. The annual list of Highly Cited Researchers includes researchers whose work ranks in the top 1% of cited scientific publications in their respective fields. In 2020, researchers from Bern from various fields such as medicine, epidemiology, biology, environment/ ecology or Cross-Field have been recognized on the list.

Land management in forest and grasslands: how much can we intensify?

High land-use intensity reduces the beneficial effects of biodiversity on ecosystem services. This is the main result of a study conducted by an international team with participation of the University of Bern. The study assessed, for the first time, the effects of land management on the links between biodiversity, ecosystem functions and ecosystem services. It identified thresholds of management intensity, where these relationships change dramatically, which species groups were most important in driving services, and the ecosystem services that are at risk when management is intensified.

Two planets around a red dwarf

The “SAINT-EX” Observatory, led by scientists from the National Centre of Competence in Research NCCR PlanetS of the University of Bern and the University of Geneva, has detected two exoplanets orbiting the star TOI-1266. The Mexico-based telescope thus demonstrates its high precision and takes an important step in the quest of finding potentially habitable worlds.

News Archive

In our archive you will find news about research and studies of members of the Faculty of Science, which are already a little older.