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Prof. Moniek Tromp has been selected as one of twenty new members of The Netherlands Academy of Engineering (NAE). The NAE is a select group of engineers, technologists and innovators from science and industry who have delivered outstanding achievements, play a pioneering role in social transitions and are committed to strengthening the role of engineering in our society.

An international team of astronomers, including Tim Lichtenberg and PhD student Emma Postolec, has found strong evidence for an atmosphere on a rocky exoplanet. The ultra-hot “super-Earth” TOI-561 b appears to be surrounded by a thick layer of gases above a global magma ocean.

Planetary scientists Quentin Changeat and Tim Lichtenberg investigate the characteristics of exoplanets. Changeat studies the atmosphere of hot Jupiter-like planets, while Lichtenberg is excited to have found an atmosphere around a planet that, according to scientific consensus, was not supposed to have one.

The right to demonstrate as regulated by law in the Netherlands does not require any radical changes. There is room for improvement mainly in the practical implementation, particularly in relation to a number of specific types of demonstrations where bottlenecks may arise. These include, for example, demonstrations in which demonstrators deliberately break the law.

This year's good news is that the national threshold of 30% female professors was reached by the end of 2024. Specifically for the UG, the monitor reveals that the 30% threshold was broken in 2024.

On 12 December it’s Purple Friday: a day on which we come together to show that everyone deserves to be themselves, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or expression. This year, the university once again shows its solidarity. As tradition has it, the Academy Building will be illuminated in purple.

Researchers Jutta Bolt (Faculty of Economics and Business) and Romana Schirhagl (UMCG) have been awarded an ERC Consolidator Grant. The European Research Council (ERC) awards these personal grants of two million euros to outstanding scientists. With this grant, the ERC stimulates groundbreaking research in Europe.

Robots are being used in more and more applications. In industry, at home, but especially in the service sector. Technological developments in this area are advancing rapidly, but our knowledge on how to best utilize robots in practice is lagging significantly behind, according to Jana Holthöwer. She studies the interaction between consumers and robots. ‘Robots are more than just technical tools – they shape how people experience care, support, and services. The key is not to use them in all circumstances, but to identify the moments when they actually add value.’

In Science is the University of Groningen podcast where we interview researchers and bring you the latest news and reports from the academic community in Groningen. The podcast is for everyone who is interested in science!

André Faaij, Professor of Energy Systems Analysis at the University of Groningen and Director of Science and Technology at TNO, attended the COP30 climate conference, where topics such as climate change, climate adaptation and the energy transition were discussed. He saw many positive aspects.