Metals from spacecraft reentry in stratospheric aerosol particles - publication
2023-09-07
Large increases in the number of low earth orbit satellites are projected in the coming decades [L. Schulz, K.-H. Glassmeier, Adv. Space Res. 67, 1002–1025 (2021)] withperhaps 50,000 additional satellites in orbit by 2030 [GAO, Large constellations of satellites: Mitigating environmental and other effects (2022)].
When spent rocketbodies and defunct satellites reenter the atmosphere, they produce metal vapors that condense into aerosol particles that descend into the stratosphere. So far, models of spacecraft reentry have focused on understanding the hazard presented by objects that survive to the surface rather than on the fate of the metals that vaporize. Here, the research shows that metals that vaporized during spacecraft reentries can be clearly measured instratospheric sulfuric acid particles. Over 20 elements from reentry were detected and were present in ratios consistent with alloys used in spacecraft. The mass of lithium, aluminum, copper, and lead from the reentry of spacecraft was found to exceed the cosmic dust influx of those metals. About 10% of stratospheric sulfuric acid particles larger than 120 nm in diameter contain aluminum and other elements from spacecraft reentry. Planned increases in the number of low earth orbit satellites within the next few decades could cause up to half of stratospheric sulfuric acid particles to contain metals from reentry. The influence of this level of metallic content on the properties of stratospheric aerosol is unknown.
Links:
Metals from spacecraft reentry in stratospheric aerosol particles
Measurement of a lithium plume from the uncontrolled re-entry of a Falcon 9 rocket – publication

Hoe verder met de Aziatische hoornaar? – Beleidsadvies - publicatie
2024-03-01
De Aziatische hoornaar / geelpoothoornaar is een invasieve exoot, die zich sinds 2003 vanuit Zuidwest-Frankrijk snel over grote delen van Europa verspreid heeft.
De soort heeft in 2017 ook Nederland via Vlaanderen bereikt. Het aantal nesten in Nederland en Vlaanderen stijgt nog steeds explosief, jaarlijks met een factor zeven, wat in 2023 resulteerde in meer dan 500 nesten in Nederland en meer dan 6400 in Vlaanderen. De soort vangt ook honingbijen en leidt daarom tot grote zorgen onder imkers. Daarom staat de soort op de Europese Unielijst van te bestrijden invasieve exoten. Nut en noodzaak van bestrijding zou heroverwogen moeten worden. De provincie Zeeland loopt hierin voorop. EIS Kenniscentrum Insecten adviseert in het rapport ‘Hoe verder met de Aziatische hoornaar? – Beleidsadvies‘ overheden na te denken over een toekomst met de Aziatische hoornaar, in plaats van luchtkastelen van totale uitroeiing na te jagen en daar tientallen miljoenen in te investeren. Goede voorlichting aan de bevolking (inclusief imkers) over de redenen van de gemaakte keuzes is hierin van groot belang.
Links:
Stop de hetze tegen de Aziatische hoornaar
Strijd tegen Aziatische hoornaar is schadelijk voor biodiversiteit

Resisting the Rule of the Rich - publication
2026-01-22
Miljardairs breken onze democratie af.
Nooit eerder hadden miljardairs samen zóveel geld, blijkt uit het rapport ‘Resisting the Rule of the Rich‘ van Oxfam Novib. Gebruiken ze dat fortuin om de wereld te verbeteren? Nee, maar wél om de politiek, economie en media naar hun hand te zetten. Ook in Nederland. Geld en macht gaan al sinds mensenheugenis samen. Maar niet eerder waren de superrijken zo rijk of ging hun invloed zo ver. Om even met een bizar cijfer te strooien: in 2025 hadden miljardairs samen 18,3 biljoen dollar. Dat is een getal met 12 nullen. De bedrijven van deze superrijken bedienen een miljardenpubliek (zoals Elon Musk met X en Mark Zuckerberg met Facebook, Instagram én Whatsapp). De kans is groot dat jij ook onder de dagelijkse gebruikers valt. Miljardairs doneren aan politieke partijen en lobbyen voor hun eigenbelang, zoals lagere belastingen op miljoenvermogens. Met succes: president Trump heeft de belastingen voor de superrijken verlaagd én verzet zich tegen het internationaal zwaarder belasten van multinationals. Sinds zijn presidentschap zijn de superrijken nóg rijker geworden. Sterker nog, nog nooit in de geschiedenis hadden miljardairs zoveel geld. Miljardairs hebben (indirect) invloed op wat er online of in de media wordt geschreven. 9 van de 10 social mediabedrijven is namelijk in handen van een miljardair, waaronder Facebook, Instagram en X. Daarnaast heeft een klein clubje milardairs, via aandelen, aanzienlijke invloed bij ruim de helft van de grootste mediabedrijven ter wereld.
Links:
Nieuw onderzoek: miljardairs breken onze democratie af
Laat de klimaatvervuilers betalen – petitie

Measurement of a lithium plume from the uncontrolled re-entry of a Falcon 9 rocket - publication
2026-02-19
A 10-fold enhancement of lithium atoms was detected at 96 km altitude by a resonance lidar at Kühlungsborn, Germany, approximately 20 hours after the uncontrolled re-entry of a Falcon 9 upper stage.
The upper-atmospheric extension of the ICOsahedral Nonhydrostatic (ICON – a unified modeling system for global numerical weather prediction and climate studies) general circulation model, nudged to ECMWF, was used to calculate winds. Backwards trajectories, including wind variability as measured by radar, traced air masses to the Falcon 9 re-entry path at 100 km altitude, west of Ireland. The study ‘Measurement of a lithium plume from the uncontrolled re-entry of a Falcon 9 rocket‘ presents the first measurement of upper-atmospheric pollution resulting from space debris re-entry and the first observational evidence that the ablation of space debris can be detected by ground-based lidar. The analysis of geomagnetic conditions, atmospheric dynamics, and ionospheric measurements supports the claim that the enhancement was not of natural origin. Our findings demonstrate that identifying pollutants and tracing them to their sources is achievable, with significant implications for monitoring and mitigating space emissions in the atmosphere.
Links:
Metals from spacecraft reentry in stratospheric aerosol particles – publication

The data heat island effect: quantifying the impact of AI data centers in a warming world - publication
2026-03-21
The strong and continuous increase of AI-based services leads to the steady proliferation of AI data centres worldwide with the unavoidable escalation of their power consumption, it is unknown how this energy demand for computational purposes will impact the surrounding environment, scientists report in the paper ‘The data heat island effect: quantifying the impact of AI data centers in a warming world‘.
Data centres built to power AIs produce so much heat that they can raise the surface temperature of the land around them by several degrees – creating so-called data centre heat islands that may already be affecting up to 340 million people. The number of data centres built around the world is forecast to rise enormously, data centre capacity will double between 2025 and 2030 – with AI expected to account for half that demand. Andrea Marinoni at the University of Cambridge, UK, and his colleagues saw that the amount of energy needed to run a data centre had been steadily increasing of late and was likely to “explode” in the coming years, so wanted to quantify the impact. The researchers took satellite measurements of land surface temperatures over the past 20 years and cross-referenced them against the geographical coordinates of more than 8400 AI data centres. Recognising that surface temperature could be affected by other factors, the researchers chose to focus their investigation on data centres located away from densely populated areas. They discovered that land surface temperatures increased by an average of 2°C in the months after an AI data centre started operations. In the most extreme cases, the increase in temperature was 9.1°C. The effect wasn’t limited to the immediate surroundings of the data centres: the team found increased temperatures up to 10 kilometres away. Seven kilometres away, there was only a 30 per cent reduction in the intensity. Using population data, the researchers estimate that more than 340 million people live within 10 kilometres of data centres, so live in a place that is warmer than it would be if the data centre hadn’t been built there. Marinoni says that areas including the Bajío region in Mexico and the Aragon province in Spain saw a 2°C temperature increase in the 20 years between 2004 and 2024 that couldn’t otherwise be explained. Chris Preist at the University of Bristol, UK, says the results may be more nuanced than they first appear, suggesting that the building being heated by sunlight may be part of the effect. Either way, the data centre is still increasing the ground temperature, says Marinoni.
Links:
AI data centres can warm surrounding areas by up to 9.1°C

Mapping pesticide mixtures to cancer risk at the country scale with spatial exposomics - publication
2026-04-01
High-resolution environmental model of pesticide risk across Peru, designed to support spatial cancer epidemiology, click on picture to enlarge
The scientific study ‘Mapping pesticide mixtures to cancer risk at the country scale with spatial exposomics‘ reveals a strong link between exposure to agricultural pesticides in the environment and the risk of developing cancer.
By combining environmental data, a nationwide cancer registry, and biological analyses, researchers from the IRD, the Institut Pasteur, the University of Toulouse, and the National Institute of Neoplastic Diseases (INEN) in Peru have shed new light on the role of pesticide exposure in the development of certain cancers. Pesticides are widely present in food, water, and the environment, often in the form of complex mixtures. Until now, it has been difficult to accurately assess their effects on human health, as most studies focus on isolated substances and experimental models that are far removed from real-world exposure conditions. This new study adopts an innovative, integrative approach that accounts for the complexity of real-world exposures experienced by populations.
Links:
Pesticides and Cancer: A Study Reveals the Biological Mechanisms Behind an Environmental Health Risk
Landbouwpesticiden verhogen kankerkans met 150 procent

Inzicht in openbare kwaliteitsinformatie in de medischspecialistische zorg : Nulmeting van de huidige staat van transparantie - publicatie
2026-04-02 | Nederland, Nederland
In het rapport ‘Inzicht in openbare kwaliteitsinformatie in de medischspecialistische zorg : Nulmeting van de huidige staat van transparantie‘ staat een nulmeting Zorginstituut Nederland en Patiëntenfederatie Nederland over de transparantie van kwaliteitsinformatie in de medisch-specialistische zorg.
Uit dit onderzoek blijkt dat er weinig informatie over de kwaliteit van zorg openbaar is voor patiënten. En dat de hoeveelheid openbare kwaliteitsinformatie de afgelopen jaren nauwelijks toeneemt. In het rapport staan de resultaten. Deze meting is uitgevoerd om een stand van zaken te krijgen over de huidige mate van transparantie van kwaliteitsinformatie in de medisch-specialistische zorg in Nederland. Deze meting volgt uit de afspraken van het Aanvullend Zorg- en Welzijnsakkoord (AZWA). Hierin staan afspraken die partijen maken om meer informatie over kwaliteit van zorg transparant te maken. Door de jaren heen zijn meerdere afspraken gemaakt om kwaliteitsinformatie voor patiënten transparant te maken, maar deze afspraken werden ook uitgesteld. Dat roept vragen op: wat is nu eigenlijk de stand van zaken? Zijn de afspraken tussen partijen in het veld en de overheid nagekomen? En zijn hiermee de beloftes aan de patiënt waargemaakt?
Links:
Rapport – Inzicht in openbare kwaliteitsinformatie in de medisch-specialistische zorg
Kwaliteitsverschil tussen ziekenhuizen amper te vergelijken voor patiënten

Exploring Everyday Microplastic Exposures - publication
2026-04-08
The report ‘Exploring Everyday Microplastic Exposures‘ reveals shocking scale of hidden global microplastic exposure.
The report highlights the vast scale of microplastic exposure in daily life in what experts are calling a “microplastic storm” from overlooked and emerging sources. Funded by Plastic Soup Foundation and The Flotilla Foundation, ‘Exploring Everyday Microplastic Exposures’, the first-of-its-kind report draws on over 350 peer-reviewed studies and concludes that human exposure is continuous and global. The findings lay bare an exposure crisis through mapping microplastic release across five categories of everyday life: outdoor sources, indoor environments, children’s products, healthcare and personal care, and food and drink. By highlighting a continuous flow of particles generated from overlooked and emerging sources the report reframes the plastics crisis as a systemic exposure issue embedded across modern society. Among the report’s most striking findings is evidence that emerging climate interventions could make microplastic exposure significantly worse. For example, stratospheric aerosol injection – a form of solar geoengineering being advanced by countries including the United Kingdom and United States – involves dispersing vast quantities of particles high into the atmosphere. Multiple patents already exist describing the release of particles including micro sized polymeric particles at altitudes of up to 20 km in the atmosphere, creating a potentially ‘tera scale’ source of intentionally added airborne microplastics and fallout. The research identifies that rainfall already contains microplastics with wear and tear from car tires and synthetic textiles and clothing contributing to atmospheric pollution. In hospitals, plastic particles may be introduced into the body via devices and treatments, with microplastic fallout in operating rooms recorded at up to 9,258 particles per square meter during a single shift. Cardiac catheters, silicone breast implants, orthopedic implants or intravenous fluid all cited as sources with the potential of inadvertently dosing patients with microplastics. Startlingly, premature babies fed intravenously in neonatal units are estimated to receive up to 115 microplastic particles over a 72-hour feeding period from the infusion circuits alone. Baby formula intake exposes babies to microplastics at levels from <1 to 17 microplastics per gram formula with packaging types playing a role in releasing the observed microplastics. Children’s products are also of significant concern – building bricks, baby play mats and other products for children releasing PET, polypropylene, polyethylene and PVC into a child’s living environment. As children naturally ingest more settled dust during play and breathe in more air per kilogram bodyweight, their exposure is proportionally higher than adults. Another unexpected indoor exposure is via paint. Plastic is the main component of many paint products and such paint emit microplastics when it wears down or when old layers are scraped off. A single coat applied across 100 square meters is estimated to contain between 17 and 68 quadrillion polymeric particles.
Links:
Shocking report about our hidden microplastic exposure

The “Nuclear Energy Paradox”- Investigating nuclear imaginaries in energy projections - publication
2026-05-01
The paper ‘The “Nuclear Energy Paradox”- Investigating nuclear imaginaries in energy projections‘ investigates the “nuclear energy paradox” which shows the recurring divergence between historical projections and actual developments.
A data compilation of long-term energy projections from international organizations such as the IAEA and the IEA as well as energy system models like GCAM and MESSAGE, as used in the IPCC, reveal a recurring pattern of high-growth projections for nuclear power. Decades of high-growth projections for nuclear power from (inter-)national agencies and from academia can be observed. Actual development shows divergence between projections and reality. A recurring pattern of overestimation can be identified, which we call the “nuclear energy paradox”. The paradox is rooted in nuclear imaginaries like the plutonium economy and/or hopes of mass production of, e.g., SMRs. Recent energy scenarios are still driven by narratives that are based on certain nuclear imaginaries.
Links:
Warum Kernenergie scheitert • Nukleares Paradox & Falsche Prognosen?

De hoogste bomen vangen minder wind: belastingdruk op inkomens en vermogens - publicatie
2026-05-06 | Nederland, Nederland
De economische verschillen tussen huishoudens nemen toe, het belastingstelsel dempt deze ontwikkeling niet en draagt soms zelfs bij aan de groeiende verschillen.
Dat komt onder meer doordat verschillende vormen van inkomen en vermogen anders worden belast, belastingheffing soms langdurig kan worden uitgesteld en er veel ondoelmatige fiscale regelingen zijn. Aanpassingen van het belastingstelsel kunnen bijdragen aan het beperken van verdere groei van economische verschillen en economische verstoringen en zo de welvaart bevorderen. Dat blijkt uit de publicatie ‘De hoogste bomen vangen minder wind: belastingdruk op inkomens en vermogens‘ van het Centraal Planbureau (CPB). Welke mate van ongelijkheid wenselijk of acceptabel is, is een politieke vraag. Dat geldt ook voor de mate waarin het belastingstelsel een herverdelende werking zou moeten hebben, maar de meeste mensen zijn van mening dat herverdeling via de belastingen gewenst is.
Links:
De hoogste bomen vangen minder wind: belastingdruk op inkomens en vermogens

Satellite quantification of enhanced methane oxidation applied to the stratospheric plume following Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption - publicatie / publication
2026-05-07
Een internationaal onderzoeksteam onder leiding van het KNMI heeft voor het eerst overtuigend aangetoond dat methaan — een belangrijk broeikasgas — in de atmosfeer op een natuurlijke manier kan worden afgebroken door chloor.
Deze ontdekking werd gedaan dankzij een mengsel van zout en as in de enorme rookpluim van de Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha’apai-vulkaanuitbarsting van januari 2022, een van de krachtigste uitbarstingen in recente decennia. De resultaten, gepubliceerd in het artikel ‘Satellite quantification of enhanced methane oxidation applied to the stratospheric plume following Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption‘, zijn gebaseerd op satellietmetingen en bieden nieuwe inzichten in hoe de atmosfeer zichzelf zuivert — en wat dat kan betekenen voor de aanpak van klimaatverandering.
Links:
Vulkaan Tonga toont voor het eerst natuurlijke katalytische afbraak van methaan door vulkaanas in de atmosfeer

Growth and formaldehyde degradation of photoheterotrophic Methylobacterium within radiation fogs - publication
2026-05-11
The report ‘Growth and formaldehyde degradation of photoheterotrophic Methylobacterium within radiation fogs‘ subscibes fog and an incredible discovery that it’s essentially a complex biosphere.
The atmosphere contains thousands to millions of bacterial cells per cubic meter. However, it remains unclear if microbes are at all active or growing in situ or whether they are merely being transported in an inactive state. Based on the analyses of 32 overland radiation fog events over a 2-year period, we show that fog waters, with bacterial concentrations similar to those in continental or marine bodies of water, contain microbiomes well differentiated in composition from those in the dry aerosol microbiomes that occur locally before, during, or after fog events. They are consistently and strongly enriched in photoheterotrophic Methylobacterium species, suggesting that fog populations may be metabolizing volatile C1 compounds in situ, although phototrophy seems much less important. Indeed, metabolically active bacteria in the fog, and representative isolates of the main field populations, can degrade formaldehyde at unprecedently high rates; most of this activity seems to play a detoxification role. The increase in bacterial aerobiome counts upon intervening fog events, the dependence of microbial concentration on ambient temperature, the increases in cell size and frequency of dividing cells in fog water with respect to cells in interstitial aerosols of fogs, in addition to their metabolic capacity, all suggest that the fog water microbiome is actually growing. Consequently, droplets of atmospheric water should be considered a potential aquatic microhabitat. Our results highlight the fog microbiome’s role in atmospheric chemistry and have implications for fog harvesting as a source of fresh water for human use.
Links:
Tiny Bacteria in the Fog May Be Helping Clean the Air

Nieuw evenwicht in het energiesysteem : Kritieke materiaalvraag voor een klimaatneutraal Nederland in 2040 - publicatie
2026-05-19
Schoner en onafhankelijker energiesysteem binnen planetaire grenzen is haalbaar met strategisch beleid.
Met strategische beleidskeuzes kan Nederland haar energie-onafhankelijkheid vergroten en tegelijkertijd het klimaat en cruciale ecosystemen beschermen. Dat blijkt uit het onderzoek ‘Nieuw evenwicht in het energiesysteem‘ van Copper8, Quintel en Polaris Sustainability in opdracht van Greenpeace Nederland. Het onderzoek laat zien dat een explosieve groei van transitiemetalen, voor onder andere zonnepanelen, windturbines en batterijen, geen gegeven is, maar een keuze. Ten opzichte van de huidige projecties kan de vraag naar transitiemetalen in de periode tot en met 2050 met 42 – 49% worden verlaagd door energiebesparing en innovatie. Mijnbouw in kwetsbare ecosystemen, waaronder de diepzee, is dan niet nodig.
Links:
Nederlandse energietransitie mogelijk met veel minder kritieke mineralen en metalen

Global heat stress intensification and its expanding footprint on the human population - publication
2026-06-22
Klik op afbeelding voor origineel
The study ‘Global heat stress intensification and its expanding footprint on the human population‘ uses the Copernicus Climate Change Service’s (C3S) ERA5-HEAT dataset to provide a comprehensive global-scale analysis of how heat stress has evolved since 1950.
Using the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI), the study shows that hazardous heat is becoming more frequent, more intense and more widespread, with hotter nights, longer heat stress seasons and increasing numbers of people exposed to hazardous heat. Heat stress is the leading cause of weather-related mortality worldwide and exacerbates underlying illnesses such as cardiovascular, respiratory and mental health conditions. As climate warming drives more frequent and intense heat extremes, understanding how heat is experienced by the human body has become increasingly important. Trends in heatwaves are well documented, and many people worldwide are exposed to chronic heat; however, less is known about how these changes translate into trends of heat as experienced by the human population, particularly at the global scale. Authored by Rebecca Emerton, Julien Nicolas, Anna Lombardi and Claudia Di Napoli from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), the study ‘Global heat stress intensification and its expanding footprint on the human population’ addresses this gap using the UTCI, a widely adopted biometeorological thermal stress index that accounts for temperature, humidity, wind and radiation, alongside modelling how the human body responds to the environment. Expressed as a “feels-like” temperature, the UTCI classifies thermal conditions ranging from cold stress to extreme heat stress based on their impact on the human body.
Links:
Global study reveals how heat stress is intensifying worldwide

Citizen science platforms must mitigate against the threat of generative AI - publication
2026-07-13
In the commentary ‘Citizen science platforms must mitigate against the threat of generative AI’ in the science journal Nature, researchers warned that hundreds of fake images have already been discovered on popular databases for recording species, they said that the true scale of the issue is unknown – as many could go undetected – and could contaminate records collected by the public.
Links:
AI-altered images on birdwatching forums putting research at risk

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026
2026-07-21
Global hunger declined for a third consecutive year in 2025, demonstrating that progress is possible. However, the improvements remain fragile, unevenly distributed and insufficient to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, according to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026 (SOFI 2026) report, released on Tuesday by five United Nations specialized agencies.
The report estimates that 7.8 percent of the global population faced hunger in 2025, down from 8.1 percent in 2024 and 8.6 percent in 2022, confirming a sustained, albeit slow, improvement. This means that around 645 million people were affected by hunger in 2025, representing a reduction of nearly 14 million compared to 2024 and 43 million compared to 2022. Despite global progress, recovery remains uneven across regions. Asia, together with Latin America and the Caribbean, has recorded steady improvements in recent years. In contrast, Africa is now home to approximately 309 million hungry people, compared with 292 million in Asia. Although Africa’s previously rising trend is beginning to stabilize, with the share of its population facing hunger decreasing from 20.3 percent in 2024 to 20.0 percent in 2025, the continent now has the highest number of hungry people in absolute terms amid a rapidly growing population. Broader measures of food access tell a similar story. In 2025, an estimated 25.8 percent of the global population (around 2.1 billion people) experienced moderate or severe food insecurity, meaning they were at times forced to compromise on the quality or quantity of the food they ate. This is down from 27.1 percent in 2024 and 28.7 percent in 2020 – equivalent to nearly 86 million fewer people than in 2024 and 135 million fewer than in 2020, though still above pre-pandemic levels. Regional disparities remain stark. More than half of Africa’s population (56.6 percent) faced moderate or severe food insecurity in 2025, compared to 20.3 percent in Asia, 22.9 percent in Latin America and the Caribbean, and 8.7 percent in Northern America and Europe. Food insecurity also continues to be more prevalent in rural areas than in peri-urban and urban areas, while women remain disproportionately affected, although the gender gap narrowed slightly in 2025.
Links:
The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026

Warm, droog en winderig: steeds vaker 'vuurweer' in Zuid-Europa / Major intensification of fire weather across southern Europe in recent decades - publication
2026-07-30
Warm, droog, lage luchtvochtigheid en winderig: het zijn omstandigheden die gunstig zijn voor natuurbranden, oftewel ‘vuurweer’, sinds begin jaren 1980 is het aantal dagen met zulk weer flink toegenomen in Zuid-Europa, schrijven wetenschappers in het artikel ‘Major intensification of fire weather across southern Europe in recent decades‘ in het vakblad Scientific Reports.
Het onderzoek beslaat de periode van 1981 tot en met 2025. Opvallend genoeg nam het aantal branden in die periode juist af. Net als het oppervlak verbrande natuur in Zuid-Europa, al schommelde dat flink van jaar tot jaar. Het onderzoek gaat dus niet over de huidige branden in Frankrijk en Spanje. Menselijk gedrag veroorzaakt de meeste ontstekingen; als mensen minder peuken achteloos weggooien of minder brandstichten, leidt dat tot minder branden. Maar er zijn nog meer zaken die invloed hebben. Denk aan het landschap en hoeveel brandstof dat bevat. Zo woeden de branden bij Bordeaux in een gebied met rijen geplante, brandbare zeedennen.
Links:
Warm, droog en winderig: steeds vaker ‘vuurweer’ in Zuid-Europa

Life 2.0: A Scalable Distributed Space-Telescope Array for Biosignature Spectroscopy - publication
2026-08-05
Answering the question “Are we alone?” requires atmospheric spectroscopy of nearby terrestrial planets, scientists conclude in the report ‘Life 2.0: A Scalable Distributed Space-Telescope Array for Biosignature Spectroscopy‘.
For an Earth–Sun analog, even the strongest transmission signals are expected to be of order 1 part per million (ppm). Unlike short-period planets, Earth 2.0 planets transit only about once per year, so single-transit sensitivity, rather than stacking repeated observations, is the fundamental design driver. Life 2.0 is a scalable space-mission concept linking Earth 2.0 candidates discovered by PLATO and the Earth 2.0 (ET) mission with atmospheric characterization and biosignature assessment. The baseline architecture comprises 900 one-meter space telescopes, each equipped with a high-throughput Waveguide Integrated Miniature Spectrograph and an ultra-low-read-noise CMOS detector. After independent calibration, spectra acquired simultaneously during a transit are combined, providing the photon-collecting capability of an approximately 30-m aperture at the selected spectral resolution while retaining a modular architecture. The baseline 0.2–1.05 μm range covers O3, O2, H2O, Rayleigh scattering, and other diagnostics, with extension into the infrared as detector technologies mature. Prototype Waveguide Spectral Lens devices have demonstrated 40–66% throughput at resolving powers from R∼200 to R∼20,000. Lightweight silicon-carbide mirrors and sub-electron-noise CMOS detectors support replicated production. Life 2.0 must address detector systematics, instrument stability, and stellar variability; rather than assuming these limitations disappear, it builds on calibration, detector-characterization, and data-analysis techniques advanced during the JWST era. The concept offers a scalable alternative to a monolithic 30-m-class space telescope and a staged pathway toward biosignature spectroscopy of nearby Earth-like planets.
Links:
Answering the question “Are we alone?” requires atmospheric spectroscopy of nearby terrestrial planets
Nine Hundred Telescopes and One Chance a Year

Snelheid klimaatverandering beïnvloedt stabiliteit van de AMOC / Failure to track a stable AMOC state under rapid climate change - publication
2026-08-13
Snelle opwarming kan leiden tot kantelpunt, langzamere opwarming waarschijnlijk niet, snelheid klimaatverandering beïnvloedt stabiliteit van de Atlantische Meridionale Omwentelingscirculatie (AMOC).
Klimaatwetenschappers laten al jaren zien dat de AMOC kan stilvallen als de aarde teveel opwarmt. Volgens het onderzoek ‘Failure to track a stable AMOC state under rapid climate change‘ van de Universiteit Utrecht is dat beeld niet helemaal volledig: het tempo van de opwarming speelt namelijk ook een belangrijke rol in het behouden van de stabiliteit van de AMOC. De Atlantische Meridionale Omwentelingscirculatie, of AMOC, is een systeem van oceaanstromingen dat warm water vanuit de tropen naar het noorden van Europa transporteert. De stroming speelt een grote rol in het verdelen van warmte over de aarde, en zorgt er onder andere voor dat het klimaat in West-Europa relatief mild is. Wetenschappers vermoeden al langer dat deze ‘warmtemotor’ van de Atlantische Oceaan kan kantelen. Dat betekent dat de stroming binnen enkele decennia zou kunnen omslaan van de huidige, krachtige staat naar een veel zwakkere staat. Zo’n kantelpunt kan worden geactiveerd door invloeden van buitenaf, zoals een toenemende hoeveelheid smeltwater vanuit poolgebieden of opwarming van de aarde.
Links:
Snelheid klimaatverandering beïnvloedt stabiliteit van de AMOC
