All News (2011 - ...)

First Light images by the eROSITA X-ray telescope. You are free to use the images for your eROSITA reporting, please give the appropriate copyright with each image. more

The scientific performance demonstrated in the first weeks of operations of the eROSITA X-ray telescope promises a breakthrough in our understanding of the energetic Universe. more

The physical process driving Gamma-Ray Bursts might be synchrotron radiation after all more

The commissioning phase of the eROSITA X-ray telescope aboard the SRG spacecraft has just been completed. During this phase, all seven eROSITA cameras have been switched on individually, and demonstrated performance satisfying the mission requirements. As of Sunday 13 October 2019, all seven telescope modules are operating simultaneously, and eROSITA has entered full science operations, beginning with the calibration and performance verification (CalPV) phase. Early images and results from eROSITA will be presented at a “first light” symposium to be held at MPE in the afternoon of Tuesday October 22nd. Interested members of the media should contact Hannelore Hämmerle (see side column) for more details. more

High-resolution images of a young stellar binary system for the first time reveal a complex network of accretion filaments nurturing two proto-stars at the centre of the circum-binary disk. With these observations, an international team of astronomers led by the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics was able to identify a two-level accretion process, circum-binary disk to circumstellar disk to stars, constraining the conditions leading to the formation and evolution of binary star systems. more

The SRG (Spektrum-Roentgen-Gamma) Orbital Observatory has recently started one of its many tests by looking at a small patch of the extragalactic sky with one of the seven eROSITA telescope modules. The results are consistent with preflight expectations. The work on commissioning other modules is still underway and will be completed in the coming weeks before starting a 4-year long all-sky survey later this year. more

How do stars and planets form? Scientists are now one step closer to pinning down the conditions for the formation of proto-stellar disks. Observations of three systems in the early stages of star formation in the Perseus cloud revealed that the profile of the angular momentum in these systems is between that expected for a solid body and pure turbulence, indicating that the influence of the core extends further out than previously thought. These findings could lead to more realistic initial conditions for numerical simulations of disk formation. more

MPE telescope will revolutionize our view of the evolving hot Universe more

MPE astronomer Natascha Förster Schreiber will receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Science from the University of Bath. With this most prestigious accolade of Bath University, Förster Schreiber is recognized not only for her distinguished career and for the breadth of her research but also for her support of the Bath Astrophysics Group since it was established. The award ceremony will take place in early July at the University of Bath. more

Star formation within interstellar gas clouds proceeds very rapidly, yet highly inefficiently. Most of the gas is quickly dispersed by stellar radiation, leading to a violent cycling in which star-forming regions are flickering as sparkles in fireworks. A team of scientists including researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics has come to these conclusions based on new observations of the spiral galaxy NGC300. more

On 25 April 2019, the Spektr-RG Space Observatory was transported to the Baikonur Cosmodrome - the final stage in preparation for its launch on 21 June. Spektr-RG carries the X-ray telescope eROSITA, which was developed and built at MPE. Its aim is to perform a highly sensitive survey of the entire sky in X-ray light, once it arrives at its observation point L2. more

The GRAVITY instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) has made the first direct observation of an exoplanet using optical interferometry. This method revealed a complex exoplanetary atmosphere with clouds of iron and silicates swirling in a planet-wide storm. The technique presents unique possibilities for characterising many of the exoplanets known today. more