Videos

Sinem

Helvacıoğlu Akyüz

VUB

How does zero gravity in space impact the human liver?

What happens to your body in space?
When gravity disappears, the body changes in ways we’re only starting to understand — and the liver is no exception. Postdoctoral researcher Sinem Helvacıoğlu Akyüz (VUB) is studying how microgravity affects liver cells, especially the proteins responsible for moving drugs through the body. Her research could lead to better protections for astronauts — and new insights into treating disease on Earth.

Thomas

Konings

KU Leuven

Looking for extraterrestrial life on an exoplanet

Does extraterrestrial life exist? To date, Thomas Konings has not discovered any extraterrestrial neighbors. But he diligently continues his search. That search for extraterrestrial life starts with the search for habitable planets. To do this, Thomas and his colleagues look at exoplanets, planets outside our solar system. But how do you study planets billions of kilometers away from us? Thomas tells you in this video.

Flore

Van Maldeghem

FWO

VUB

Space dust on your roof

Once in a while, a meteorite hits Earth, which then becomes world news. But did you know that there is a constant rain of micrometeorites falling on Earth? These are meteorites smaller than 2 mm, some of which, if you look closely, you can find on your flat roof. What makes micrometeorites so interesting that VUB researcher Flore Van Maldeghem even travels to remote Antarctica to find them? She tells us in this video.

Abigail

Frost

KU Leuven

We are all made of stardust ... but how?

All the elements we find here on earth were created long ago in the universe, floating around space in the form of stardust, coming from massive stars. "If we want to understand earth and where we came from, we need to understand these massive stars", says astronomer Abigail Frost (KU Leuven). That's why, using a technique called interferometry, she observes these rare and very distant stars.