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Simon Schneider and Yannick Garcin. Photo: Corinna Kallich

The Mystery of the Rainforest – Geoscientists show that humans were already shaping the central African landscape 2,600 years ago

Fields, roads, and towns but also forests planted in neat rows, and dead-straight rivers: people shape nature to better suit their purposes. The fact …
Historic water mills by the Karun River in Iran, where water power has been used for over 2,500 years. Photo: Axel Bronstert.

Essential for Life and yet not available everywhere - Prof. Dr. Axel Bronstert coordinates a sub-project on water resources management

Households in Germany consume about 120 liters of water per capita, per day. Furthermore, industry, power plant cooling and agricultural irrigation …
Diskussion am Kalderarand des Mount Longonot. Foto: Henry Wichura.

Underway in Kenia – February, 15: “Oloonong’ot – mountain of many ridges

Geoscientists on an Excursion in the East African Rift System

February, 15th Today we want to study one of the largest caldera volcanoes of the Kenya Rift - Mount Longonot at an elevation of about 2560 m. …

Detecting abrupt transitions – be it in ocean heat or financial markets

From stock indices to sea surface temperatures, a lot of relevant data comes in the form of time series. Reliable detection of abrupt transitions such …
Prof. Dr. Dirk Wagner. Photo: Karla Fritze.

Quite Warm, Quite Cold – Geomicrobiologist Dirk Wagner researches the smallest lifeforms in extreme environments

The Arctic, deserts, and volcanos: Life exists in very unexpected places – and on a surprising scale. Geomicrobiologist Prof. Dr. Dirk Wagner tracks …

The Language of Images - Potsdam researchers analyze climate images on the internet

2013 was a record year in Australia: The average temperature reached an all-time high. To even be able to depict it, meteorologists had to introduce a …
Apl. Prof. Dr. Martin Trauth (left) and his students. Photo: Karla Fritze.

“You can do more with Legos” – What do plastic building blocks have to do with a university course?

A practical course with Martin Trauth is packed with high-tech: infrared and ultrasound sensors, gyroscopes, magnetometers, multispectral cameras – …
Prof. Dr. Ariane Walz. Photo: Karla Fritze.

Nature Conservation from Space – Researchers develop new methods for monitoring protected areas

Earth is being increasingly observed, measured, and photographed. Satellites orbiting our planet at altitudes of hundreds to a thousand kilometers are …
Dr. Natalia Ospina-Alvarez. Photo: Karla Fritze.

In Her Element – Why thallium and other trace elements are becoming a problem for the environment and what can be done about it

They are everywhere: in the soil, in the water, and sometimes even in the air, albeit often in such small quantities that they are hardly traceable. …
Potsdam Summer School participants in 2016. Image: IASS/Pierro Chiussi.

Potsdam Summer School Explores the Future of Cities – International exchange on the sustainability of human environments

Potsdam, 28.08.2017. The rapid pace of change around the world is presenting humankind and human environments with tremendous challenges. What …