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Latest News
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Probing supermassive black holes: simulations reveal a new pattern in torn-apart stars
Supermassive black holes are among the largest objects in the Universe, yet most of them remain effectively invisible. Now, simulations conducted by Lucio Mayer’s team at the University of Zurich, together with colleagues in Italy, the UK, and the US, on CSCS’s Alps supercomputer using the new GPU-based code SPH-EXA, show in unprecedented detail how a star is torn apart by a black hole, producing a signal that can reveal its presence. The results also identified a previously unseen pattern that may help detect these hidden giants in the future.
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From dust to planets: a turbulent story
How does fine dust aggregate into building blocks that ultimately form entire planets like our Earth? A research team led by the University of Bern, with the participation of ETH Zurich, the University of Zurich and the National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR) PlanetS has provided the first experimental evidence – obtained during parabolic flights in zero gravity – that a key physical process, known as shear-flow instability, actually occurs under conditions similar to those in planet formation regions. The study thus addresses an important gap in our understanding of the very first steps of planet formation.
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Meet a Scientist: Dr. Gabriele Cugno
UZH astronomer Dr. Gabriele Cugno is one of a few researchers in Switzerland working with data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), one of the most powerful space-based telescopes ever built. In this interview, he talks about his work detecting moon-forming disks around young exoplanets and using molecular mapping to study their composition, shedding light on how moons and giant planets form and what this tells us about the origins of planetary systems like our own.
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First UZH Space Representative Meeting
The first UZH Space Representative Meeting was held on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, at the UZH Space Hub’s Hangar 4 at Dübendorf Airfield. The meeting brought together representatives from different research areas and faculties to discuss organisational matters, receive updates on ongoing initiatives, and brainstorm ideas to strengthen cross-faculty collaboration, including joint events and new formats.
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New chapter for Aesthetics of Wonder
UZH Space, in collaboration with the Faculty of Arts, is pleased to announce a new chapter for Aesthetics of Wonder. Following the latest exhibition, the large-scale images were unfortunately damaged during transport. A new collection is currently in production in which twelve of the images are being reinterpreted and transformed by emerging artists and student artists as part of a Faculty of Arts project.
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UZH Space Hub expands space and aviation ecosystem with three new users
The University of Zurich's Space Hub continues to grow: Starting February 1, three new organizations will be using the infrastructure at the Space Hub Hangar, thereby strengthening the space and aviation ecosystem in the areas of research, education, and technology transfer.
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Physik-Institut participating in NASA study to track the Artemis II moon mission
NASA's Artemis II mission will launch in February 2026 with four astronauts on board for the first crewed mission around the moon in over 50 years. In August 2025, non-NASA organizations were invited to apply for a study to find out if and how data from small receiving stations can be used to determine the trajectory of the Orion spacecraft. The University of Zürich has been selected to participate in this study and will perform precise frequency measurements with its own roof-installed radio telescope.
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Bringing Machine Learning closer to People through Art
Lukas Drees, UZH Space representative and postdoctoral researcher at the EcoVision Lab at UZH as well as a member of the DIZH Public Data Lab, explains in this interview how he aims to bridge a gap between public perceptions of machine learning and what the technology actually is and can do, and why the Public Data Lab is particularly well suited to this task.
Read the full interview here -
UZH Festive Card Snow 2025
This year’s UZH festive card features an image drawn from UZH research with a link to space-based observation. The selected image was contributed by the Department of Geography and is based on satellite data, showing dry snow on mountain peaks in yellow, while areas of consistently strong backscatter in urban regions appear in white.
The image was part of this year's exhibition “The Aesthetics of Wonder” at UZH. -
UZH Space - Networking Apéro 2025
UZH Space hosted an informal networking event open to the entire UZH Space community and researchers interested in joining the initiative. The gathering was particularly aimed at early-career researchers to strengthen grassroots support for transdisciplinary research within the UZH Space community.
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Uranus and Neptune Might Be Rock Giants
A team of researchers from the University of Zurich and the NCCR PlanetS is challenging our understanding of the Solar System planets’ interior. The composition of Uranus and Neptune, the two outer most planets, might be more rocky and less icy than previously thought.
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Capturing the Cosmos: Exploring the art and science of astrophotography
On March 16, 2026, the Department of Astrophysics and UZH Space hosted a special public astrophotography event celebrating the beauty of the cosmos.
Guests enjoyed a gallery-style exhibition of stunning images captured by members of the department, alongside an apéro and engaging presentations highlighting the creative process, technical challenges, and the stories behind the images and telescopes.