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Today a saline mudflat, the Chew Bahir Basin in southern Ethiopia once held an extensive paleo-lake during humid phases. Scientific deep drilling from the current playa surface produced a ~620,000-year long sedimentary record providing insights into the intense shifts of eastern Africa’s highly variable hydroclimate. | Image Credit: Annett Junginger

Newly discovered African ‘climate seesaw’ drove human evolution

A scientific consortium led by Dr Stefanie Kaboth-Bahr of the University of Potsdam has found that ancient El Niño-like weather patterns were the …

Double Success – Funding Extension for the DFG Collaborative Research Centers at the University of Potsdam

The German Research Foundation (DFG) positively reviewed the two Collaborative Research Centers at the University of Potsdam and approved their …
Prof. Dr. Manfred Strecker | Photo: Thilo Schoch

Honoured – Potsdam geoscientist Prof. Dr. Manfred Strecker elected to the Academia de Ciencias of Argentina

Geologist Professor Manfred Strecker from the University of Potsdam was inducted into the Academia Nacional de Ciencias of Argentina (Córdoba) on May …
Representation of atomic clusters formed by gold, arsenic and sulfur in arsenian pyrite (shown in the background as imaged using Scanning Electron Microscopy; not to scale).

A mineral pump for gold in the Earth’s crust

An international team of scientists with participation of mineralogist Dr. Maria Kokh from the University of Potsdam was able to elucidate the mystery …
Dr. Maximilian Korges and Prof. Dr. Max Wilke | Photo: Sandra Scholz

The Nursery of Mineral Resources – Geoscientists research ore genesis

They come in all kinds of colors and shapes – black, white, green, blue or shiny silver, as nondescript as rock or formed into impressive crystals. …
Dr. Savi collecting sand for geochemical analyses | Photo: Velio Coviello

Moving Rocks – How climate warming changes mountain regions

Since 2015, geologist Sara Savi has been researching the influence of climate on debris flows in the high mountains of Argentina. In her current …
The Orroral Valley Fire, southern Canberra, January 2020 | Credit: Nick-D (distributed under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license)

From fire to flash flood – scientists analyse consequences of devastating wildfires in Australia 2019/20

Scientists of the research training group “NatRiskChange” at the University of Potsdam could show that cascading effects can amplify the impacts of …
Peter van der Beek during a sampling campaign in the Alps | Foto: T.F. Schildgen

Looking at smallest atoms to understand large-scale Mountain ranges – A welcome to Peter van der Beek at the Institute of Geosciences

Peter van der Beek has joined the academic leadership at the Institute of Geosciences at Potsdam University. The internationally well-known Earth …
Humboldt Fellow Gautier Nicoli (3.v.l.) does his research at the Skaergaard Intrusion, Greenland …

Seen from the root of mountains – Humboldt Fellow Gautier Nicoli links plate tectonics and the carbon cycle

As a petrologist, Gautier Nicoli deals with the occurrence, composition and formation of rocks. He collects samples of metamorphic rocks from all over …
The research team in Namibia | Photo: Olwen Evans

Where Kudu and Springbok Live – Researchers from Potsdam examine if good wildlife management can help the savanna

The savanna is in danger. The African grasslands - picturesque groups of trees on wide plains, large herds of wild animals passing by, vigilantly eyed …