Visualization of the cosmic web structure with galaxies marked by star symbols. Two scales are shown: a larger image of 100 million light years and a detailed section of 10 million light years.

A Sea of Light: HETDEX Astronomers Reveal Hidden Structures in the Young Universe
Simulation of a star forming region with zoom to a dense core

Proto-stellar disks in their natural habitat
Several bright spots in space in front of a dark background.

Measuring the expansion of the universe with cosmic fireworks
Large telescope structure in arid landscape with mountains in the background.

The plot thickens: independent confirmation of early Universe data hints at new physics
Image with dots for galaxies, arrows for velocities, and a coloured distribution of dark matter.

An old puzzle solved: astronomers discover the world is flat
A black hole with swirling light and distant stars in the background.

Astronomers confounded by a mysterious million solar-mass dark object whose inner structure defies explanation
large, bright star transfers matter to a black hole with an accretion disk. image by ESA, Hubble

Explosive endpoints of a life next to a black hole
Gas clouds in purple with small yellow dots.

MOGLI: Following the Hidden Life of Astrophysical Gas
Sequence of a star transforming into a compact object beside another star.

The Hidden Efficiency of Stellar Interactions

News at MPA

Three individuals stand at the Uganda Equator landmark.

Strengthening ties between the MPG and Uganda

February 03, 2026

In January, Prof. Dr. Tobias Bonhoeffer, Advisor to the MPG President on Africa Affairs, visited the Partner Group of the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics at Kyambogo University in Uganda, led by Dr. Benard Nsamba. Prof. Bonhoeffer met with the university's top management and participated in a productive collaborative board meeting, discussing future research initiatives and opportunities for deeper cooperation.
 
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Graduate holding diploma and medal, flanked by two faculty members in academic robes.

MPA Postdoc Claude Cournoyer-Cloutier awarded Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal

December 09, 2025

For her excellent graduate studies, Claude Cournoyer-Cloutier, who is now a postdoctoral fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, received the Governor General’s Academic Gold Medal at the McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada at the end of November.
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man with green pull-over

Marat Gilfanov appointed Distinguished Guest Professor at Nanjing University

November 18, 2025

The School of Frontier Science at Nanjing University has announced the appointment of Prof. Dr. Marat Gilfanov, Senior Scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics (MPA), as a Distinguished Guest Professor. Currently, Gilfanov is working with the Nanjing scientists on a joint project studying intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs).
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All news
March 2026
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"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"The Evolution of Complex Organic Molecules in Star-Forming Regions Traced by Carbon Isotopic Signatures"

Mar 2, 2026 from 02:00 PM to 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Massive Black Holes on the Move: Mergers, Wanderers, and Multi-Messenger Signatures From Cosmological Simulations"

Mar 2, 2026 from 03:30 PM to 04:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Detecting Dark Energy Perturbations in the Large-Scale Structure of the Universe"

Mar 3, 2026 from 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Novel Nuclear Technologies for a Greenhouse Gas-Free Energy Supply"

Mar 3, 2026 from 03:00 PM to 05:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Galaxies and Black Holes"

Mar 3, 2026 from 07:00 PM to 08:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Odd Radio Circles (ORCs): Probing Radio Features at Group Scales With Simulations"

Mar 4, 2026 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Postponed to March 4 due to the MVV strike.

"Between Plateaus and Slopes: A Data-Driven Exploration of Spectral Diversity Across Type IIP/L Supernovae"

Mar 4, 2026 from 02:00 PM to 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"A Hypergeometric View on Banana Integrals and Beyond"

Mar 5, 2026 from 01:00 PM to 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"From Rotational Spectra to Molecular Structures"

Mar 5, 2026 from 02:00 PM to 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Characterizing Wind Conditions at Two Sites on the Chajnantor Plateau"

Mar 5, 2026 from 03:00 PM to 04:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Learning Hierarchies of N-Point Statistics From Cosmological Fields With Physics-Informed Neural Networks"

Mar 5, 2026 from 03:30 PM to 04:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Physical Properties and Redshift Distributions of KiDS-1000 Galaxies Using Pop-Cosmos"

Mar 5, 2026 from 04:00 PM to 04:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

USM Games Night

Mar 5, 2026 from 06:00 PM to 08:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Uncovering the Absorbed Atomic Universe With the [OI] 63µm Line"

Mar 10, 2026 from 12:00 PM to 12:45 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Differentiable Forward Modeling of Galaxy Populations With DiffstarPop"

Mar 10, 2026 from 02:00 PM to 03:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"The JWST/MIRI View of the Binary System HK Tau"

Mar 10, 2026 from 03:00 PM to 04:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"M Stars: From Planet-Hosting Dwarfs to Evolved End-Of-Life Stars Through 3D Radiative-Hydrodynamical Simulations"

Mar 10, 2026 from 03:00 PM to 04:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Adding New Pieces to the Puzzle of Star Formation"

Mar 11, 2026 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"The Era of Precision Cosmology with Voids"

Mar 11, 2026 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"The Galaxy–Halo Connection and Differentiable Modeling with JAX"

Mar 11, 2026 from 12:30 PM to 01:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fitting Molecular, CI Lines, and Dust Continuum on Galaxy Scales: A Short Trip Down Memory Lane"

Mar 12, 2026 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

TBA

Mar 12, 2026 from 03:15 PM to 04:15 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

Prepare for AI Discussion

Mar 16, 2026 from 12:00 AM to 01:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

TBA

Mar 17, 2026 from 12:30 PM to 01:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

TBA

Mar 18, 2026 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Why Do We Do Astrophysics in the Era of AI?"

Mar 24, 2026 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

"Fill the Gap: Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Dark Matter and Neutrino Direct Detection Experiments"

from Mar 2, 2026 12:00 AM to Mar 27, 2026 12:00 AM (Local Time Germany)

Upcoming seminars

"Uncovering the Absorbed Atomic Universe With the [OI] 63µm Line"

Mar 10, 2026 12:00 PM - 12:45 PM (Local Time Germany)
ESO, Room: Auditorium Telescopium (ESO HQE, Garching)

"The Era of Precision Cosmology with Voids"

Mar 11, 2026 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
MPE, Room: HEG Meeting Room (1.3.27)

TBA

Mar 12, 2026 03:15 PM - 04:15 PM (Local Time Germany)
ESO Garching, Room: Auditorium Eridanus (ESO HQE, Garching)

Job Offers

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Meet our MPA fellows

Spirals, waves and gliding along

Spirals, waves and gliding along

September 06, 2023

While concerned with massive objects such as neutron stars and black holes in her work, Martyna Chruslinska loves the lightweight feeling of figure skating in her spare time.
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A look back forward

A look back forward

​​​​​​​​2023 marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Max Planck Society. On February 26, 1948, in Göttingen, the proven concept of the Kaiser Wilhelm Society as a successful model of non-university research funding was rescued for the young Federal Republic, but also changed in a forward-looking way. Both are the basis of the MPG in its present form and success. The anniversary is celebrated as the most important caesura within the history of the MPG, which goes back to 1911, and at the same time sets the course for the future viability of the society, which must be discussed again and again.
Find out more in the MAX Intranet:
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About MPA

Structure

Managing Director
Prof. Dr. Selma E. de Mink

Scientific Members, Kollegium, Directors
Prof. Dr. Selma E. de Mink
Prof. Dr. Guinevere Kauffmann
Prof. Dr. Eiichiro Komatsu
Prof. Dr. Volker Springel

Emeritus Directors
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Hillebrandt
Prof. Dr. Rashid Sunyaev
Prof. Dr. Simon White

External Scientific Members
Prof. Dr. Rolf-Peter Kudritzki
Prof. Dr. Werner Tscharnuter

Head of the administration
Pia Fischhaber

Contact

Press and Public Relations
Dr. Hannelore Haemmerle
Phone: 089 30000-2179
email: pr@mpa-garching.mpg.de

Dr. Hans-Thomas Janka
Phone: 089 30000-2228
(contact per phone only)

Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, Garching
Karl-Schwarzschild-Str. 1
Postfach 1317
D-85741 Garching, Germany

Click for Travel directions

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