We’re a major partner in a new telescope instrument that will help us see massive stars in the Milky Way and view the distant Universe.

We are pleased to announce the winners of the Developing Talent Award for 2026: James Gill-Fleming (CfAI) , Aurelie Magniez (CfAI), Omer Rathore (CMP) and Max von Wietersheim-Kramsta (ICC & CEA) Summaries of their projects can be found below. Congratulations to all awardees and best of luck with your projects. We'd like to thank everyone who applied for their excellent proposals. There were 13 submissions this year. The competition was tight, and the panel had their work cut out for them.

Research jointly led by our astronomers has created the highest resolution map of the dark matter that threads through our Universe.

Durham researchers are pushing the boundaries of physics research, contributing to major advances in our understanding of the Universe.

Shortly after the 2026 New Year's festivities had finished, thirty 1st year fusion PhD students braved the ice and snow to come to the Physics Department at Durham University for three days to make some critical current (IC) measurements on high temperature superconductors (HTS).

Astronomers from our Physics department have discovered a striking and unexplained shock wave surrounding a dead star.

Dr Daniel Ruttley, a researcher from the Quantum Light and Matter (QLM) group, has been awarded the prestigious Entanglement Prize, sponsored by the QuantumLeaks Foundation, at the Quantum Talents Symposium in Munich.

The quality of teaching and learning that our students enjoy at Durham has been recognised at a global awards ceremony.

Professor Adekunle Adeyeye, Professor in Physics and Principal of Trevelyan College, has been awarded the prestigious Fellowship of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers of the USA for his “contributions to synthesis and characterization of magnetic nanostructures for low-power magnonic information processing applications”.

Six Durham researchers have earned a place on one of the world’s most respected research rankings.

Visible light is only a small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. What does the Universe look like at radio wavelengths? This lecture will explore the surprising and fascinating history of radio astronomy, and take a look at what we have learned about super-massive black holes using radio telescopes.

Our scientists are investigating how a UK-led team could design and build a core instrument for a flagship NASA mission to search for life on distant planets.