Archive | Research Highlights 2025

2025/12/16

© NASA

NASA's IMAP Mission Captures 'First Light'

The Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP), launched September 24, 2025, has taken its "first light" observations, with all 10 instruments successfully recording their first measurements in space. The University of Bern is participating in this mission with two instruments developed at WP.

2025/12/10

© University of Bern, Design: Eric Zankl

University of Bern involved in mission to study the asteroid Apophis

At its Ministerial Council meeting, the European Space Agency (ESA) has approved the RAMSES mission. The joint mission by ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency JAXA will investigate the flyby of the asteroid "Apophis" by Earth in April 2029. The University of Bern is involved in the mission with the camera CHANCES. The camera will take high-resolution images to study possible changes in the composition and properties of Apophis' surface under the influence of Earth's gravitational pull.

2025/10/08

©CC by SA 3.0 IGO, ESA/TGO/CaSSIS for CaSSIS

Raging winds on Mars

On Mars, dust devils and winds reach speeds of up to 160 km/h and are therefore faster than previously assumed: This shows a study by an international research team led by the University of Bern. The researchers analyzed images taken by the Bernese Mars camera CaSSIS and the stereo camera HRSC with the help of machine learning. The study provides a valuable data basis for a better understanding of atmospheric dynamics, which is important for better climate models and future Mars missions.

2025/09/09

©NCCR PlanetS / Thibaut Roger

Artificial intelligence drives the discovery of new exoplanets

Researchers from NCCR PlanetS and CSH have developed an 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 LLMs powering tools like ChatGPT.

2025/09/08

©NASA/Princeton/Patrick McPik

WP involved in NASA mission to explore the heliosphere

WP is participating in the NASA Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe mission (IMAP), which is due to be launched no earlier than 23.09.2025. IMAP is dedicated to exploring the outer limits of the heliosphere, the protective bubble of solar wind in which our solar system is located. The findings should revolutionize our understanding of interstellar space, space weather and the protective function of the heliosphere for Earth.

2025/07/23

Moon under bombardment

Where does the Moon's exosphere come from? A TU Wien study, which the University of Bern ist taking part in, and uses real lunar rock, reveals that the erosive effect of solar wind ions on the Moon has been vastly overestimated.

2025/06/20

©ESA/BepiColombo/MTM

Tidal forces from the Sun could have deformed cliffs on Mercury

A new study by researchers of the University of Bern shows that the hilly surface of Mercury could be influenced not only by the cooling and contraction of the planet, but also by the tidal forces of the Sun. Future analysis will draw on new data from the BepiColombo mission, which is currently on its way to Mercury. BepiColombo is a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The University of Bern is involved with two instruments.

2025/05/19

Slope Streaks on Mars - not a sign of water after all?

A new study led by the University of Bern and Brown University in the U.S. casts doubt on one of the most tantalizing clues that water might be flowing on present-day Mars. Researchers analyzed a global database of 500,000 streaks that occur on Martian slopes, concluding they're likely caused by dry processes.

2025/05/14

Venus more tectonically alive than we thought

Several tectonic processes are occurring beneath the surface of Venus, according to a new study led by researchers from the University of Bern’s Center for Space and Habitability and NASA. They found that many of the numerous “coronae” scattered over Venus’ globe are associated with gravity field perturbations.

2025/04/09

© University of Bern, Illustration: Thibaut Roger

Where to find the next Earth

A team from the University of Bern and the National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) PlanetS has developed a machine learning model that predicts potential planetary systems with Earth-like planets. The model could significantly accelerate and thus revolutionize the future search for habitable planets in the universe.

2025/02/25

© Emirates Mars Mission, Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre/UAE Space Agency

Why Mars could be red

An international research team led by the University of Bern and Brown University in the US state of Rhode Island may have solved the mystery of the reddish color of Mars. The team identified the water-rich iron mineral ferrihydrite as the main culprit of the characteristic reddish Martian dust. This discovery could not only explain the planet's color, but also point to a wetter, potentially habitable Martian past.

2025/02/25

© University of Bern, Photo: Peter Keresztes Schmidt

New findings in the search for life on Mars

Researchers from the University of Bern, in collaboration with the University of Science and Technology Houari Boumediene in Algeria, have made significant progress in astrobiology. In a recently published study, they were able to detect fossil microorganisms in Messinian gypsum, which is found in Algeria, using the Bernese mass spectrometer LIMS. This shows that LIMS could also be used to search for traces of life in similar deposits on Mars in the future.

2025/02/03

AI unveils: Meteoroid impacts cause Mars to shake

A study led by the University of Bern shows that impacts on Mars send seismic shockwaves farther and deeper than previously thought and many of the marsquakes recorded by the NASA InSight lander are caused by meteoroid impacts.

2025/01/15

© UNIGE, Illustration: Thibaut Roger

Not all Hot Jupiters orbit solo

Hot Jupiters are giant planets initially known to orbit alone close to their star. During their migration towards their star, these planets were thought to accrete or eject any other planets present. However, this paradigm has been overturned by recent observations, and the final blow could come from a new study led by the University of Geneva (UNIGE). A team including the National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) PlanetS, the Universities of Bern (UNIBE) and Zurich (UZH) and several foreign universities has just announced the existence of a planetary system, WASP-132, with an unexpected architecture. It contains not only a Hot Jupiter but also an inner Super-Earth and an icy giant planet. These results are published in Astronomy & Astrophysics.