We study the formation of stars on all scales and the birth of planetary systems and their evolution. The Department established observational programs to search for extrasolar planets and to…
Directly after the Big Bang, the universe was very simple and almost without structure. In the present universe, we see galaxies of various shapes and forms, aligned on an intricate weave of dark…
We are in the midst of a revolution in the study of extrasolar planets. Thousands of recent discoveries have revealed that planets are common — most stars host at least one — and they show much…
Laura Kreidberg is interested in exoplanets large and small. Her research focuses on atmosphere characterization, with the goal of turning these distant planets into real places -- revealing what they're like and how they came to be.
Thomas Henning has always been interested in fundamental physical and chemical processes. As a school student he established his own chemical laboratory and later became interested in non-linear dynamics.
Hans-Walter Rix has been working on understanding why galaxies—arising ultimately from random fluctuations in the early Universe—exhibit such intricate structure and beautiful regularity in their dynamics and stellar populations.
Astronomy is a fascinating subject, and the astronomers at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy see it as their responsibility to reach out to the general public, to teachers and pupils, and to the media.
The magazine »Sterne und Weltraum« (Stars and Space) is the most widely circulated popular scientific astronomy magazine in the German-speaking countries. It was founded in Heidelberg over 60 years ago.
The Institute has produced a number of videos on various aspects of activities at MPIA. Among them are videos on astronomical research and instrumentation technology. Other videos feature the MPIA directors and provide information for the public.