News

New receiver site completes MAARSY-3D

Operations have begun at the new MAARSY3D receiver site near Brøstadbotn, Norway.

„Rostock's 11“ at IAP

Young scientists presented their research at the IAP during “Rostock’s 11” in the form of creative short talks to a panel of judges and the audience.

“Rostock’s 11” Science Communication Competition at the IAP

Institute Colloquium

Nick Pedatella (NSF, NCAR/HAO, USA) Development and Applications of Data Assimilation for Whole Atmosphere Models

Ministerial Visit to ALOMAR and MAARSY

During their visit to Andøya Space, Ministers Dorothee Bär and Bettina Martin gained insight into our work in atmospheric research.

Milestone in atmospheric physics: Ground-based lidar detects lithium from space debris for the first time

Kühlungsborn, 26.02.2026 – Researchers of IAP successfully detect lithium from rocket re-entry at an altitude of around 100 kilometres for the first time. A milestone for atmospheric research.

Successful doctoral thesis provides new insights into the dynamics of the polar mesosphere

Kühlungsborn, 06.02.2026 – Our PhD student Jennifer Hartisch has successfully defended her doctoral thesis.

Dr. Astrid Maute takes over as head of the Satellite Data Analysis Working Group

Kühlungsborn, 01.10.2025 – Dr. Astrid Maute took over as head of the Satellite Data Analysis working group at the IAP on October 1, 2025. She earned her doctorate at the University of Stuttgart and then worked as a scientist at the High Altitude Observatory of the NCAR, at CIRES at the University of Colorado Boulder, and at the Space Weather Prediction Center/NOAA in Boulder (USA). Her areas of expertise include the coupling between the ionosphere and the atmosphere as well as the ionospheric dynamo, which she researches using satellite data and physical modeling.  We look forward to working with her!

Head of the State Chancellery visits the IAP

Kühlungsborn, 27.08.2025 – Today, Patrick Dahlemann, Head of the State Chancellery of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, visited the Leibniz Institute for Atmospheric Physics in Kühlungsborn. The visit took place as part of his summer tour this year, which takes him to companies, associations, and institutions in the state. Mr. Dahlemann was accompanied by Olivia Arndt, the mayor of Kühlungsborn. After a short tour of the institute, there was an opportunity for a short discussion with representatives of the IAP. Topics included research at the institute and interfaces with society and regional development. The IAP is delighted about the interest shown by state politicians and the opportunity for direct exchange.

MaxiDusty-2: Research rocket successfully launched from Andøya Space

Kühlungsborn, 07.07.2025 - Last Saturday at precisely 8 a.m., a research rocket with the MaxiDusty-2 payload was successfully launched from Andøya Space. The launch took place on the seventh countdown day after a two-week integration phase. The aim of the mission is to collect dust particles in the mesosphere and then investigate them further in the laboratory. In order to gain a better physical understanding of the formation and growth of these particles, important atmospheric parameters were measured using the CONE and Faraday rocket instruments developed by the IAP. The rocket was intended to fly specifically through dust clouds in the mesosphere - for example through regions with noctilucent clouds (NLC) or polar mesospheric summer echoes (PMSE). With the help of our lidar at the ALOMAR observatory and the MAARSY radar, we were able to identify suitable flight conditions. The flight and the recovery of the payload were successful. The scientific instruments have already been dismantled, cleaned and prepared for return transportation.