Research and public service in the physics and chemistry of the atmosphere of the Earth and other planets, and of outer space.
Curiosity selfie
Mars exhibition opening at UGent Armand Pien public observatory

Good news, you don't have to sit still this summer! The UGent Armand Pien public observatory is reopening its doors to the public today, and has prepared a lot of fresh Mars science for you :

VEGA SSMS
Launch of Belgian CubeSats postponed to August

Vega Flight VV16 is postponed to August, due to persistent unfavourable winds at high altitudes above Kourou (French Guyana, South America). Aboard the Vega launcher, 53 satellites, including two Belgian CubeSats, PICASSO and SIMBA, are waiting to be lifted into orbit.

Airglow on Mars seen by TGO
ExoMars NOMAD spots unique green light at Mars

The NOMAD instrument, developed at the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy and currently in orbit around Mars on board ESA's ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, has detected a unique green glow of oxygen in the atmosphere surrounding the red planet (around 80 km altitude). This emission gives its characteristic colour to the terrestrial polar aurora and airglow, but was never observed before in other planetary atmospheres outside of the Earth.

Venus
Pioneers of an instrument on its way to Venus

The Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy is working on a future ESA mission to Venus, called EnVision. The spacecraft is currently scheduled for launch in 2032, and its aim will be to investigate the geological characteristics and activity of Venus, as well as their influence on the planet’s atmosphere. This could help us understand why Venus and Earth evolved so differently.

Nitrogen dioxide pollution from traffic has decreased all over the world due to the lockdowns.
Satellites see a worldwide decrease in nitrogen dioxide pollution as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, China shows first signs of economic recovery

Scientists from the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), in collaboration with the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have determined the extent to which the COVID-19 crisis has had an impact on air quality. The results were published on May 8, 2020, in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

Ozone hole over the Arctic
Exceptional ozone hole over the Arctic in 2020

This spring, the Arctic was marked by what may be the largest hole in the ozone layer ever recorded over the North Pole. The ozone hole is a common seasonal phenomenon observed yearly over the South Pole areas (Antarctica). Ozone holes over the Arctic, however, are rarer. Since the start of satellite observations over this region in 1978, only one Arctic ozone hole has formed above the North Pole before, in 2011. Unusual meteorological conditions are responsible for this year’s exceptional ozone hole at the North Pole.