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Nearly 100 species of swift are completely adapted to life in the air. That is the conclusion of researchers at Lund University in Sweden after having studied a third species and observing that some individuals did not land for over three months. “They eat and sleep while they are airborne. This is something that researchers have believed since the 1950s, and now we can show that it’s true”, says

https://www.science.lu.se/article/swifts-are-born-eat-and-sleep-air - 2025-10-29

Solar storms can be far more powerful than previously thought. A new study has found evidence for the third known case of a massive solar storm in historical times. The researchers believe that society might not be sufficiently prepared if a similar event were to happen now. Our planet is constantly being bombarded by cosmic particles. However, at times the stream of particles is particularly stro

https://www.science.lu.se/article/researchers-uncover-additional-evidence-massive-solar-storms - 2025-10-29

The giant planet Jupiter was formed four times further from the sun than its current orbit, and migrated inwards in the solar system over a period of 700.000 years. Researchers found proof of this incredible journey thanks to a group of asteroids close to Jupiter. It is known that gas giants around other stars are often located very near their sun. According to accepted theory, these gas planets w

https://www.science.lu.se/article/jupiters-unknown-journey-revealed - 2025-10-29

By generating 3D images of bumblebees’ compound eyes, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have discovered how bumblebees differ in their vision. The results could contribute to increased knowledge about the pollination process - once researchers are able to determine which flowers different bees see easily, and which ones they find it harder to distinguish. Researchers have previously known t

https://www.science.lu.se/article/3d-models-reveal-why-bigger-bumblebees-see-better - 2025-10-29

In recent years, researchers have tried to capture the electrical current that bacteria generate through their own metabolism. So far, however, the transfer of the current from the bacteria to a receiving electrode has not been efficient at all. Now, researchers from institutions including Lund University have achieved a slightly more efficient transfer of electrical current. One of society’s grea

https://www.science.lu.se/article/bacteria-could-become-future-source-electricity - 2025-10-29

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 dioxide and other nutrients t

https://www.science.lu.se/article/researcher-awarded-prestigious-erc-grant - 2025-10-29

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 clues into the fate of our own Solar System in the far-off future. According to a new study published in Science, researchers have found a small celestial body, a so-called planetesimal, orbiting a white dwarf approximate

https://www.science.lu.se/article/remains-planet-found-orbiting-dead-star - 2025-10-29

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 Sweden. In his spare time, however, h

https://www.science.lu.se/article/geology-professor-releases-new-book-about-heavy-metal - 2025-10-29

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 research team comprising biologists from Sweden and

https://www.science.lu.se/article/dung-beetles-use-wind-compass-when-sun-high - 2025-10-29

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 land use are important

https://www.science.lu.se/article/unique-climate-model-includes-vegetation-developed - 2025-10-29

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 their energy on avoiding being eaten. To protect themselves, certain animals switch colour, while others change their body shape. An

https://www.science.lu.se/article/fear-predators-increases-risk-illness - 2025-10-29

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 screening pigments did not exist in arthropods. “We were surprised by what we found because we were not looking for, or expecting it”, says Johan Lindgren, an Associate Professor at the D

https://www.science.lu.se/article/composition-fossil-insect-eyes-surprises-researchers - 2025-10-29

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 of biodiversity. The unexpected discovery could be r

https://www.science.lu.se/article/gigantic-asteroid-collision-boosted-biodiversity-earth - 2025-10-29

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 likely to turn even browner – however, there is hope. Supported by a new study, researchers from Lund University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences are pointing to

https://www.science.lu.se/article/how-changes-land-use-could-reduce-browning-lakes - 2025-10-29

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 energy. The study, now published in the scientific

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-researchers-have-analysed-alternative-skating-technique-could-revolutionise-ice-hockey - 2025-10-29

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 the lunar cycle and moonlight affect the departure time when the birds start their

https://www.science.lu.se/article/moon-determines-when-migratory-birds-head-south - 2025-10-29

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 and drought. In contrast to humans, plants cannot feel pain. Howeve

https://www.science.lu.se/article/impact-water-droplets-leaves-quickly-triggers-stress-responses-plants - 2025-10-29

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 must be a black hole. The giant star is around 10.000 light years from the sun. I

https://www.science.lu.se/article/lund-researchers-have-tracked-black-hole-near-red-giant-star - 2025-10-29

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 sun is an unlimited source of pure and renewable energy. Howeve

https://www.science.lu.se/article/iron-based-solar-cells-track-becoming-more-efficient - 2025-10-29

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 chromosomes”, explains Bengt Hansson, professor at Lund Univer

https://www.science.lu.se/article/record-size-sex-chromosome-found-two-bird-species - 2025-10-29