Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research

Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research

The research focus of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research is our cosmic neighborhood: the solar system with its planets and moons, comets and asteroids as well as the sun. The aim of the scientists is to describe the processes in the solar system in models and to simulate them on the computer. In addition, instruments are being developed and built to study these bodies from space. The Institute is involved in numerous space missions.

Historical Sunspots: One two, three … and Counting

Historical Sunspots: One two, three … and Counting

In their endeavor to count thousands of sunspots in historical drawings of the Sun, a research project by MPS and INAF is looking for assistance from dedicated amateur researchers. Their task is to sift through observations of the Sun that astronomer Angelo Secchi and his collaborators recorded between 1853 and 1878. Such historical data helps to understand how active our star once was - and what it might have in store for us in the future. The Zooniverse project “Sunspot Detectives” was launched today.

 

Paul Niggli Medal forDr. Christian Renggli

Paul Niggli Medal for
Dr. Christian Renggli

The Swiss Geological Society has awarded the Paul Niggli Medal 2023 to Dr. Christian Renggli from the MPS. The committee thus honoured his experimental research on gas-solid reactions, which brought our understanding of volcanoes on Earth and throughout the Solar System on a similar level. His work on the distribution of sulphur on Mercury points to a possible mechanism for the formation and weathering of sulphur crusts.

Auroras down to the Caribbean

Auroras down to the Caribbean

151 years ago, a powerful solar storm hit Earth: on February 4, 1872, telegraph offices in many parts of the world reported hours of disturbances and outages; auroras were visible in India, Sudan and the Caribbean. In the scientific journal The Astrophysical Journal, a group of 22 researchers led by the Nagoya University in Japan and including a MPS scientist presents the most comprehensive investigation of the unusual event to date.

Giant doubts about giant exomoons

Giant doubts about giant exomoons

Only two of the more than 5300 known exoplanets have so far provided evidence of moons in orbit around them. In observations of the planets Kepler-1625b and Kepler-1708b from the Kepler and Hubble space telescopes, researchers had discovered traces of such moons for the first time. A new study now raises doubts about these previous claims. As scientists from the MPS and the Sonnenberg Observatory  report in Nature Astronomy, "planet-only" interpretations of the observations are more conclusive.

Research Departments

Sun and Heliosphere
The focus of this department is the solar interior, the solar atmosphere, the solar magnetic field, the heliosphere, and the interplanetary medium, as well as solar radiation and solar energetic particles. The balloon-mission Sunrise, a balloon-borne solar observatory, is managed by this department. The mission investigates our central star from a height of about 35 km. In addition to several other participations in space missions, the department significantly contributes to the ESA's Solar Orbiter.
Planetary Science Department
This department investigates the interior, the surfaces, atmospheres, ionospheres, and magnetospheres of planets and their moons, as well as comets and asteroids. The department currently contributes or has contributed to important space missions such as the ESA's missions JUICE to the Jovian system, BepiColombo to Mercury and Rosetta to comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko as well as NASA's missions InSight to Mars and Dawn to the asteroid belt.
Solar and Stellar Interiors
Helioseismology and asteroseismology are tools that use the oscillations of the Sun and stars to probe their interior structure and dynamics. This allows us to test and refine the theory of stellar structure and evolution, thereby bringing us closer to understanding solar and stellar magnetism. The department hosts the German Data Center for NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, and is preparing to host the data center of ESA's exoplanet hunting mission, PLATO.

At a Glance

International Office
On the pages of the International Office, new employees and guests will find information for their stay in Göttingen and at the institute.
IMPRS
PhD programme: International Max Planck Research School for Solar System Science at the University of Göttingen.
Staff at the MPS
Staff directory
Restaurant at the End of the Universe
Canteen at the MPS
Mon - Fri 9 - 13
This week's menu

News

Seminars

ESPOS -Data-driven mode l of temporal evolution of the solar Mg II h and k profiles over the solar cycle (J. Koza)

Mar 21, 2024 11:00 AM c.t. - 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
https://zoom.us/j/165498165

Was ist da draußen? Die PLATO-Mission zur Suche nach extrasolaren Planeten. (M. Ammler-von Eiff, M. Schäfer)

Apr 4, 2024 07:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
Max-Plack-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Room: Auditorium

Was ist da draußen? Atmosphären ferner Welten. (M. Rengel)

Apr 18, 2024 07:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
Max-Plack-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Room: Auditorium

Was ist da draußen? - Extreme Winde auf heißen Jupitern. (V. Böning)

May 2, 2024 07:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
Max-Plack-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Room: Auditorium

MPS Seminar: On the Origin of the Photospheric Magnetic Field (M. Linton)

May 16, 2024 02:00 PM - 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
MPS, Room: Lecture Hall

Was ist da draußen? - Entstehung und Entwicklung terrestrischer Exoplaneten. (T. Lichtenberg)

May 23, 2024 07:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
Max-Plack-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Room: Auditorium

News

In their endeavor to count thousands and thousands of sunspots in historical drawings of the Sun, a joint research project by the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany and the National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) in ...

The Swiss Geological Society (German: Schweizer Geologische Gesellschaft (SGG)) has awarded the Paul Niggli Medal 2023 to Dr. Christian Renggli from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS). The committee thus honoured his ...

Only two of the more than 5300 known exoplanets have so far provided evidence of moons in orbit around them. In observations of the planets Kepler-1625b and Kepler-1708b from the Kepler and Hubble space telescopes, researchers had discovered traces ...

Auroras in the Caribbean

December 07, 2023

151 years ago, a powerful solar storm hit Earth: on February 4, 1872, telegraph offices in many parts of the world reported hours of disturbances and outages; auroras were visible in India, Sudan and the Caribbean. In the scientific journal The ...

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