SRON scientists discover dozens of methane plumes every week using the Dutch space instrument TROPOMI. To locate their sources, they then zoom in with other satellites. However, brief methane releases have typically ended before those satellites arrive at the scene. The team has now developed a new method that is fast enough to catch the largest of such emissions. Publication in Geophysical Research Letters.
Category: News
Astronomers finally discover double white dwarf set to explode into supernova
A small international team of astronomers including Silvia Toonen (UvA) and Gijs Nelemans (RU, KU Leuven and SRON) has discovered two white dwarf stars orbiting each other that will merge and explode into a type Ia supernova. This missing link in astronomy has long been predicted. The researchers publish their findings today in Nature Astronomy.
Name SRON becomes acronym: Space Research Organisation Netherlands
The Dutch institute for scientific space research SRON has a new logo, a new name, a new corporate identity and a completely revamped website with effect from Wednesday 26 March 2025. From now on, SRON stands for Space Research Organisation Netherlands (SRON).
XRISM finds evidence for gas flows in galaxy cluster
Using the XRISM X-ray telescope, astronomers have observed hot gas sloshing back and forth in the core of a cluster of galaxies. This provides the first direct evidence of gas motions driven by a collision on cosmic scales. Publication in Nature.
Duo of Satellites Detect Large Methane Emission from Ethiopian Volcano
SRON—as part of the European CAMS service—and GHGSat have detected a substantial methane emission from Mount Fentale, an active volcano in Ethiopia. The emission, estimated at 58 metric tonnes per hour, was observed on January 31 through a “tip and cue” approach between Europe’s Copernicus program’s Sentinel-5P TROPOMI satellite instrument and GHGSAT’s satellite constellation, coordinated by SRON and GHGSAT.
Dutch satellite instrument SPEXone produces aerosol world map
On February 8th 2024, NASA launched its PACE climate satellite with onboard the Dutch aerosol instrument SPEXone. A full year of observations now yields a world map of aerosols. It shows the distribution of fine and coarse aerosols and of particles that reflect or absorb sunlight. The latter respectively have cooling and warming effects on the climate. SPEXone was built by SRON and Airbus Netherlands, with support from TNO.
Annual carbon monoxide emissions measured from Europe’s 21 largest steel plants
The Dutch TROPOMI space instrument creates daily global maps of carbon monoxide (CO) in the atmosphere. Researchers from SRON and TNO have now measured CO emissions over a full year from the 21 largest European steel plants, including Tata Steel.
Scientific goals NewAthena: from stars and black holes to the cosmic web
Het wetenschappelijke consortium van ESA’s toekomstige NewAthena röntgentelescoop heeft haar doelen voor de missie gedefinieerd in een publicatie in Nature Astronomy.
TRAPPIST planet dissected: volcanic rock or atmosphere full of CO2 and haze
Astronomers have used the James Webb Space Telescope to measure the infrared spectrum of a rocky planet in the auspicious planetary system of TRAPPIST-1. It is what you’d expect from a planet covered in volcanic rock. Another scenario includes an atmosphere full of CO2 and smog. The team, including Michiel Min (SRON), publishes the results in Nature Astronomy.
XMM-Newton celebrates 25 years in space
On December 10th, ESA’s X-ray observatory XMM-Newton celebrates 25 years in space. SRON contributed to one of XMM-Newton’s three instruments—the Reflection Grating Spectrometer. From planets to black holes, the space telescope has delivered many ground-breaking observations of a variety of celestial objects. Let’s take a look at four fascinating discoveries from the past five years.
White paper: NL-US collaboration in climate research from space
In oktober 2024 kwamen wetenschappers uit Nederland en de Verenigde Staten bijeen op de Nederlandse ambassade in Washington om hun expertise te delen over broeikasgassen, reactieve gassen, wolken en aerosolen. Deze thema’s zijn belangrijk voor klimaatonderzoek. In een whitepaper formuleren ze acties die antwoord gaan geven op urgente klimaatvragen.
From atoms to the cosmos: ‘Everything in the universe is connected’
Kunnen we de grootste structuren in het universum onderzoeken door te kijken naar de kleinste deeltjes? Daarover gaat het onderzoek van Lydia Stofanova, promovendus aan de Leidse Sterrewacht en SRON—het Nederlandse instituut voor ruimteonderzoek. Ze bestudeert hoe elementen zoals zuurstof de grootschalige structuur van het universum beïnvloeden. Op 13 november verdedigde ze haar proefschrift.
PRELIFE consortium receives NWA grant to study origins of life
An interdisciplinary research consortium, including Floris van der Tak (SRON/RUG) and Michiel Min (SRON) has been awarded an NWA grant by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) to investigate the origin of life on Earth and in the universe. The so-called PRELIFE consortium (Pathways, Reactions and Environments) receives €6.7 million to explore this research question.
Gold antenna increases sensitivity detectors for proto-planetary systems
Researchers at SRON and TU Delft have made bolometer detectors thirty percent more sensitive. Bolometers form the heart of terahertz spectrometers that can distinguish colors up to one-millionth of their wavelength. This is needed to observe astrophysical processes such as the birth of stars and planets from gas and dust clouds. The enhancement should cut the time in half that it takes a space telescope to take a spectrum.
Golden antenna improves sensitivity detectors for proto planetary systems
Researchers at SRON and TU Delft have made bolometer detectors thirty percent more sensitive. Bolometers form the heart of terahertz spectrometers that can distinguish colors up to one-millionth of their wavelength. This is needed to observe astrophysical processes such as the birth of stars and planets from gas and dust clouds. The enhancement should cut the time in half that it takes a space telescope to take a spectrum.
Lightweight centimeter-sized terahertz spectrometer
Researchers at TU Delft, SRON and LongWave Photonics LLC have created a centimeter-sized, lightweight terahertz spectrometer. Current spectrometers are half a meter in size and much heavier. Weight and size play a large role since terahertz radiation is only detectable from space. Publication in Laser & Photonics Reviews.
Kick-off Astrophysics Centre for Multimessenger studies in Europe
The Astrophysics Centre for Multimessenger studies in Europe (ACME) has kicked off its activities in Paris. This EU-funded project aims to optimize the European-wide accessibility and cohesion of multiple astroparticle and astronomy research infrastructures, such as VIRGO, KM3NeT, Auger Prime and LOFAR, to realize multi-messenger astrophysics.
PRIMA selected as candidate for NASA’s Probe mission
Out of the eight projects that competed to become NASA’s Probe mission, only two remain. The Probe far-Infrared Mission for Astrophysics (PRIMA) and the Advanced X-ray Imaging Satellite (AXiS) have been selected for the second round. SRON delivers the detectors for PRIMA, developed together with TU Delft.
First XRISM results: ten-billion-degree supernova remnant and dust donut at 0.1 light years from black hole
Following its launch on September 7th, 2023, and the subsequent series of tests, the XRISM X-ray telescope has produced its first two scientific papers. The team marveled at a temperature of ten billion degrees Celsius inside a supernova remnant. And it measured the distance of the dust ring around a supermassive black hole. In the case of NGC 4151, this turns out to be 0.1 light years. SRON has developed the filter wheel and an X-ray source used to calibrate the energy scale of the Resolve instrument.
SRON and partners develop vibration damping for cold optics of the Einstein Telescope
SRON is part of a consortium that will develop vibration damping of cryogenically cooled optics for the future gravitational wave detector Einstein Telescope (ET). The collaboration has now received a grant of € 1.375.000 from the R&D scheme technology domains ET.
Pixels TROPOMI methane detector remain almost completely intact
Since its launch in 2017, the Dutch TROPOMI space instrument has been constantly impacted by cosmic rays. An analysis of the onboard short-wave infrared detector, tasked with detecting methane and carbon monoxide, shows that 98.7% of its pixels are still working properly. Spontaneous recovery of pixels contributes to this. Publication in Measurement Science and Technology.
Astrophysics in the lab: TES detectors measure X-rays from hot plasma
SRON has joined forces with the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics (MPIK) and the Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planetologie (IRAP) to generate reference data for astronomical observations and scrutinize the laws of hot plasma physics. The electron beam ion trap (EBIT) at MPIK in Heidelberg simulates a hot plasma, while superconducting transition-edge sensors (TES) developed by SRON measure the emitted X-ray spectra with unprecedented energy resolution.
SRON to detect methane plumes for the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service
SRON has been selected by the European Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) to provide satellite data analysis for its new monitoring service on methane emissions. CAMS provides atmospheric information to policymakers, businesses and citizens. It delivers real-time European air quality analyses and forecasts as well as observation-based emission estimates.
Liquid crystal coronagraphs for crystal clear vision of a second Earth
David Doelman has been awarded a Veni grant for his research on advanced optical technologies for the next generation of space telescopes. These telescopes aim to directly study the light from Earth-like planets orbiting nearby stars, in search of evidence of liquid water and life.
Climate models give different predictions on sulfate aerosol formation
The cooling effect of aerosols adds an uncertainty of almost one degree in climate models. Sulfate aerosols are one of the most impactful types. An analysis of several widely-used models now concludes that their predications on the creation of sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere differ almost as much as a factor of two. The PACE satellite will help to reveal which models are most accurate. Publication in Journal of Geophysical Research.
