The atmosphere is not just a blanket of air surrounding our planet—it is a dynamic and vital component of Earth’s climate system and essential to the sustainability of life. Remarkably, this vast and often extreme environment is home to a surprising diversity of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, and microalgae. These airborne life forms play roles far beyond what was once imagined. In our research group, we explore how these microorganisms manage to survive the challenging conditions of the atmosphere and how they might influence key physical processes—most notably, the formation of clouds and precipitation.
By studying the diversity and abundance of atmospheric microbes, we aim to identify their main sources, understand how they are transported into the air, and reveal the mechanisms that allow them to persist and even thrive while airborne. A fascinating aspect of our work is examining whether these microorganisms remain metabolically active once suspended in the atmosphere—and if they do, what environmental factors control their activity. Some of these microbes are capable of producing special proteins that trigger ice formation in cloud droplets at relatively warm temperatures (close to 0°C). This biological ice-nucleation process can act as a catalyst for rainfall, with significant implications for ecosystems, agriculture, and urban environments.
We investigate these ice-nucleating proteins both in terms of their molecular function and their evolutionary history, seeking to understand how they have developed and how they might be harnessed or mimicked. By uncovering the roles of airborne microbes in atmospheric processes, we aim to contribute new knowledge that can improve the accuracy and predictive power of weather and climate models.
Our work stands at the intersection of microbiology, atmospheric science, and climate research—with the ambition to illuminate one of the lesser-known, yet potentially powerful, drivers of Earth’s climate system.
Frontier Research
Our research sits at the frontier of science because it challenges traditional boundaries between disciplines and explores a largely uncharted component of Earth’s climate system: the role of microorganisms in the atmosphere. While microbes have long been studied in soil, water, and living organisms, their presence and function in the air—one of the most extreme and dynamic environments on Earth—remains a scientific frontier. Investigating life in the sky is not only inherently fascinating, it also has the potential to reshape our understanding of key atmospheric processes such as cloud formation, precipitation, and even climate regulation.
This field pushes the limits of microbiology, atmospheric science, and climate modeling, demanding novel methodologies, cross-disciplinary thinking, and a readiness to confront the unknown. We ask bold questions: Can airborne microbes actively influence the weather? Are their biological processes significant enough to be included in climate models? What are the evolutionary drivers behind their adaptations to life in the atmosphere?
Answering these questions requires innovative approaches—from sampling microbial life at high altitudes, to studying their ice-nucleating proteins at the molecular level, to integrating findings into atmospheric models. This kind of work is inherently exploratory and high-risk, but also high-gain. The insights we generate could have significant implications for agriculture, urban water management, and global climate policy.
For science journalist trainees, this is an exceptional training ground. First, the topic is timely: climate science and biodiversity are central themes in public discourse, yet the idea that life in the air could influence the weather remains relatively unknown to the broader public. Communicating this complex, cutting-edge science in an accessible and engaging way offers an exciting challenge—and a chance to make a real impact on how people understand the planet.
Second, the interdisciplinary nature of the project provides exposure to a wide range of scientific techniques, questions, and communities—from microbiologists and molecular biologists to meteorologists and environmental modelers. This gives trainees a deep appreciation for how different scientific cultures collaborate to tackle shared problems.
Finally, our research group is internationally diverse and highly collaborative, offering an inspiring, open, and intellectually stimulating environment. Trainees will be immersed in a culture of curiosity, critical thinking, and creativity—an ideal setting to sharpen their ability to observe, interpret, and communicate science at the cutting edge.