Published 4 April 2019 A researcher at the Department of Geology at Lund University has been awarded just over SEK 26 million by the European Research Council, ERC. Daniel Conley, professor of biogeochemistry at Lund University, has been awarded the grant for a five-year project on diatoms in the ocean. Diatoms have a significant impact on the global biogeochemical cycles of carbon, silicon dioxid

https://www.science.lu.se/article/researcher-awarded-prestigious-erc-grant - 2025-07-17

Published 8 April 2019 This planetary fragment is orbiting around the white dwarf among the debris from the earlier solar system. The image is an artistic impression. Illustration: University of Warwick/Mark Garlick. Astronomers have discovered what appears to be the remnants of a planet orbiting a dead star in a disc of debris formed from destroyed planets. The planetary fragment could offer clue

https://www.science.lu.se/article/remains-planet-found-orbiting-dead-star - 2025-07-17

Published 3 May 2019 Mats E. Eriksson Professor Mats E. Eriksson of Lund University in Sweden is now publishing his second book in the somewhat unusual subject combination of geological fossils and heavy metal music. Researching microscopic fossils and attempting to reconstruct several hundred million-year-old ecosystems is Mats E. Eriksson’s day job as a professor of geology at Lund University in

https://www.science.lu.se/article/geology-professor-releases-new-book-about-heavy-metal - 2025-07-17

Published 2 July 2019 Photo: Chris Collingridge. Researchers have shown for the first time that an animal uses different directional sensors to achieve the highest possible navigational precision in different conditions. When the sun is high, dung beetles navigate using the wind. The discovery of the dung beetles’ wind compass and how it complements the sun compass was made by an international res

https://www.science.lu.se/article/dung-beetles-use-wind-compass-when-sun-high - 2025-07-17

Published 5 August 2019 Researchers at Lund University have contributed to creating a uniquely detailed global climate model that will increase our understanding of climate change. It is the first time that vegetation and land use, at this level of detail, are included in climate modeling within EC-Earth, a global climate and earth system model. Previous calculations have shown that vegetation and

https://www.science.lu.se/article/unique-climate-model-includes-vegetation-developed - 2025-07-17

Published 5 August 2019 The crucian carp lower down has lived near predators, and is bigger (in height). Photo: Jerker Vinterstare. Predators are not only a deadly threat to many animals, they also affect potential prey negatively simply by being nearby. Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have studied what happens to the prey’s immune system when they are forced to expend a large amount of t

https://www.science.lu.se/article/fear-predators-increases-risk-illness - 2025-07-17

Published 21 August 2019 Fossil crane-fly from the 54-million-year-old Fur Formation of Denmark. Note distinct compound eyes preserved as dark stains. Photo: René Lyng Sylvestersen. Eumelanin – a natural pigment found for instance in human eyes – has, for the first time, been identified in the fossilized compound eyes of 54-million-year-old crane-flies. It was previously assumed that melanic scree

https://www.science.lu.se/article/composition-fossil-insect-eyes-surprises-researchers - 2025-07-17

Published 19 September 2019 Illustration: Don Davis. An international study led by researchers from Lund University in Sweden has found that a collision in the asteroid belt 470 million years ago created drastic changes to life on Earth. The breakup of a major asteroid filled the entire inner solar system with enormous amounts of dust leading to a unique ice age and, subsequently, to higher levels

https://www.science.lu.se/article/gigantic-asteroid-collision-boosted-biodiversity-earth - 2025-07-17

Published 29 August 2019 The water in the glasses comes from natural waters within a distance of 35 kilometers in the county of Jönköping, southern Sweden. (Photo: Stefan Löfgren). Over the past 50 years, the water in lakes and watercourses has turned increasingly brown. The so-called browning has a negative impact on both drinking water production and ecosystems. If nothing is done, the water is

https://www.science.lu.se/article/how-changes-land-use-could-reduce-browning-lakes - 2025-07-17

Published 26 September 2019 Ice hockey player In a new article, researchers at Lund University have studied a new ice-skating technique that is more energy efficient than the traditional stride technique. By skating in arcs, ice hockey players can move just as quickly but with less energy loss. The authors say this could lead to better performance on the ice, as the players would retain more energ

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-researchers-have-analysed-alternative-skating-technique-could-revolutionise-ice-hockey - 2025-07-17

Published 16 October 2019 Gabriel Norevik with a nightjar. Photo: Aron Hejdström. A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that the presence or absence of moonlight has a considerable bearing on when migratory birds take flight in the autumn. Together with colleagues at the Department of Biology at Lund University, Gabriel Norevik studied European nightjars (Caprimulgus europaeus) and how

https://www.science.lu.se/article/moon-determines-when-migratory-birds-head-south - 2025-07-17

Published 1 November 2019 Olivier Van Aken. Photo: Johan Joelsson. An international study led by researchers at Lund University in Sweden and The University of Western Australia shows that the pressure from water droplets on a leaf surface triggers stress hormones like jasmonic acid. These cellular changes become apparent very quickly and can could make plants better equipped to withstand disease

https://www.science.lu.se/article/impact-water-droplets-leaves-quickly-triggers-stress-responses-plants - 2025-07-17

Published 7 November 2019 Black hole. Illustration: LL Calçada/M Kornmesser/ESO An international research team have discovered a peculiar object circling a red giant star. The celestial body is invisible but still has a strong impact on the star’s orbit. With the help of data simulations carried out at Lund University, the researchers have now been able to establish that the mysterious companion m

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-researchers-have-tracked-black-hole-near-red-giant-star - 2025-07-17

Published 22 November 2019 Jens Uhlig. Photo: Johan Joelsson. An international study led from Lund University in Sweden shows that 30 per cent of the energy in a certain type of light-absorbing iron molecule disappears in a previously unknown manner. By closing this loophole, the researchers hope to contribute to the development of more efficient solar cells using this iron-based solar cell. The s

https://www.science.lu.se/article/iron-based-solar-cells-track-becoming-more-efficient - 2025-07-17

Published 4 December 2019 Skylark. Photo: Richard Ubels. Researchers in Sweden and the UK have discovered the largest known avian sex chromosome. The giant chromosome was created when four chromosomes fused together into one, and has been found in two species of lark. “This was an unexpected discovery, as birds are generally considered to have very stable genetic material with well-preserved chrom

https://www.science.lu.se/article/record-size-sex-chromosome-found-two-bird-species - 2025-07-17

Published 4 December 2019 Not all neonicotinoid insecticides have negative effects on bees, according to researchers at Lund University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. Their new study indicates that the use of certain neonicotinoids could benefit bumblebees and pollination. In a field study, the researchers Maj Rundlöf, Lund University, and Ola Lundin, the Swedish University o

https://www.science.lu.se/article/use-certain-neonicotinoids-could-benefit-bumblebees-new-study-finds - 2025-07-17

Published 18 December 2019 By analysing almost daily water samples taken from the same river from 1940 until today, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have confirmed their hypothesis that the browning of lakes is primarily due to the increase in coniferous forests, as well as rainfall and sulphur deposits. The study was carried out on the Lyckebyån River in southeast Sweden. However, Martin

https://www.science.lu.se/article/unique-data-confirms-why-water-turns-brown - 2025-07-17

Published 18 December 2019 A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that plant-eating insects affect forest ecosystems considerably more than previously thought. Among other things, the insects are a factor in the leaching of nutrients from soil and increased emissions of carbon dioxide. The researchers also establish that the temperature may rise as a result of an increase in the amount o

https://www.science.lu.se/article/plant-eating-insects-disrupt-ecosystems-and-contribute-climate-change - 2025-07-17

Published 7 January 2020 Experiment set-up measuring how many blinks per minute a falcon perceives. Photo: Simon Potier. Extremely acute vision and the ability to rapidly process different visual impressions – these two factors are crucial when a peregrine falcon bears down on its prey at a speed that easily matches that of a Formula 1 racing car: over 350 kilometres per hour. The visual acuity of

https://www.science.lu.se/article/falcons-see-prey-speed-formula-1-car - 2025-07-17

Published 7 January 2020 Two top international researchers have been named honorary doctors at Lund University’s Faculty of Science. Mary Higby Schweitzer achieved cult status with her fossil finds, including from a pregnant Tyrannosaurus rex female. Through advanced observations, astronomer Thomas Henning gave the world an increased understanding of how stars and planets are formed. Mary Higby Sc

https://www.science.lu.se/article/dinosaur-expert-and-planet-formation-guru-are-new-honorary-doctors-science - 2025-07-17