Some of 2025’s scientific discoveries pushed the limits. Earth’s longest lightning and the first AI-generated genomes are among this year’s superlative achievements, along with black holes old and large. Here are the record-breaking findings that stretched scientific boundaries and captured our attention. Light up the sky The record-breaking lightning megaflash (illustrated) spanned about 829…
December 31, 2025 1 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm Colliding Spiral Galaxies Captured in Sparkling Detail Astronomers combined data from NASA’s JWST and Chandra X-ray Observatory to create a stunning new image of two merging spiral galaxies By Claire Cameron edited by Sarah Lewin Frasier X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Infrared: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI/Webb; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/L. Frattare…
LSD can enhance the brain’s ability to rewire itself, potentially dampening anxiety TUMEGGY/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/GETTY IMAGES Two major trials investigating the potential of the psychedelic drug LSD for reducing anxiety are set to conclude in 2026. Scientists are feeling positive after the drug’s success in an earlier-stage trial, which could mean the treatment will be…
Matthieu Tordeur, Heïdi Sevestre and the bust of Vladimir Lenin at the southern pole of inaccessibility, Antarctica Heïdi Sevestre/Matthieu Tordeur In the endless white expanse, a small mound broke the horizon. As explorer Matthieu Tordeur and glaciologist Heïdi Sevestre skied towards it, they saw a golden head emerging from the snow. It was the bust…
December 30, 2025 4 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm Here’s What to Get Excited about in Space in 2026 From crewed lunar voyages to flight tests of fully reusable rockets and launches of new orbital telescopes studying the outer limits of the cosmos, 2026 should be a banner year for space science and…
The 3D-printed microscope Dr Liam M. Rooney/University of Strathclyde At the beginning of 2025, a preprint of a paper about a new microscope caused an awful lot of excitement among researchers. It was the world’s first fully 3D-printed microscope, made in only a few hours and for a fraction of the typical cost. Liam Rooney…
The recent surge in the use of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs has propelled addiction-adjacent terms such as “food noise” and “food cravings” into common vernacular. But can food actually be addictive? Now some neuroscientists and food behavior researchers are trying to understand if food—particularly ultraprocessed foods—can be addictive in the same way as other known substances,…
The multiverse was proposed as a way to make sense of bizarre quantum behaviour VICTOR de SCHWANBERG/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY A physics experiment published this year that claimed to measure a single photon in two places at once – and, in the process, discredit the idea of a multiverse – drew pushback from many sceptical physicists,…
December 30, 2025 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm NASA’s New Chief Just Put a Fresh Twist on the Texas Space Shuttle Saga NASA’s new boss Jared Isaacman hinted that he could break with Texas lawmakers’ push to move iconic space shuttle Discovery from the Smithsonian to Houston By Claire Cameron edited by…
It all started with an overheard conversation between some camel herders. The year was 1916, and Gaston Ripert, a French army captain, had been injured and sent to recover in the small town of Chinguetti in Mauritania. It was a lonely, dusty place on the edge of the Sahara. So when Ripert heard local people…
