Science News
What did Henry IV of France sound like?
After his assassination in 1610 by Ravaillac, Henry IV’s body was embalmed and his skull preserved. Digital scans of the tissue, bones and cartilage behind sound production suggest he had a deep, resonant voice with a distinctive timbre, shaped by the unique structure of his sinuses.
Journal of Voice, 13 January 2026
An Ice Age mouse
Bark: a climate ally
Trees possess a hidden defence against global warming: billions of bark-dwelling bacteria that consume methane, a potent greenhouse gas. This long-overlooked microbiota acts as a natural atmospheric filter that could be harnessed to clean air faster. Researchers are now installing sensors high in tree canopies to monitor these organisms over time.
Science, 8 January 2026
Public health data falling behind
By the end of 2025, nearly half of US public health surveillance databases were no longer being updated, including those tracking vaccination, respiratory diseases and overdose deaths, usually updated monthly. This resulted from budget and staffing cuts in federal public health agencies under the Trump administration.
Annals of Internal Medicine, 26 January 2026
Antarctica: a climate vault
On 14 January 2026, the Ice Memory Foundation unveiled the world’s first sanctuary for mountain ice cores in Antarctica. Two samples taken from the Alps are now stored there at −52°C without power. These frozen climate records will be preserved for centuries, ensuring future scientists can study Earth’s climate even after glaciers vanish.
Ice Memory Foundation, January 2026
Our common ancestor in Morocco
Early hominin fossils discovered near Casablanca, Morocco, in 2008 and 2009, have finally been dated to 773,000 years ago. Scientists used a method that tracks reversals in Earth’s magnetic poles. The fossils likely belong to the last common ancestor of three human species — Neanderthals, Denisovans and sapiens — confirming the ancestral African lineage of our species.
Nature, 8 January 2026
Did you know?
NASA plans to build a nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030 to support future human missions under the Artemis programme.
NASA, 2 February 2026
Rock samples stay on Mars
NASA’s 2026 budget fell by only 1.6% — far less than the drastic cuts initially envisaged by the US president, but still enough to halt the Mars Sample Return mission with the European Space Agency. The mission had planned to return 35 Martian rock samples to Earth by 2040, offering new insights into the Solar System’s history and the possibility of past life on Mars.
US Congress, 16 January 2026
Udder logic
Veronika, a Swiss Braunvieh cow, is challenging assumptions about bovine intelligence. In an Austrian Alpine field, she uses a long broom handle with surprising dexterity to scratch herself, switching between the smooth end for sensitive areas and the brush for her back. This first documented case of flexible tool use in cattle suggests their cognitive abilities may be greater than previously thought.
Current Biology, 19 January 2026
450 metres
This is the height reached by lava fountains at Hawaii’s Kīlauea volcano in January 2026 — a record! The eruption also blasted volcanic rocks into the air and rained ash up to 40 kilometres away.
US Geological Survey (USGS) Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, 29 January 2026
A new branch of life
Since 1859, the 407-million-year-old Prototaxites have puzzled scientists. Standing up to 8 metres tall, these smooth, trunk-like "land giants" were long debated as either fungi or tree ancestors. However, new chemical analysis suggests they may belong to an entirely distinct, extinct lineage of eukaryotes.
Science Advances, 21 January 2026
Chemical mimicry in action
Larvae of the European black oil beetle release a blend of volatile compounds that smell like flowers. Lured by the scent, bees approach, the larvae cling on, hitch a ride to the hive and feed on the eggs. This bait strategy is the first known case of an animal faking a floral scent.
BioXriv, 15 January 2026
Mapping the invisible
A new James Webb Space Telescope study of light from nearly 800,000 galaxies has produced the most precise map of dark matter to date. They confirm dark matter’s role as the ‘cosmic architect’: a gravitational scaffold that pulls visible matter together to form stars and galaxies.
Nature Astronomy, 26 January 2026
4 centuries
Even at 400 years old, Greenland sharks still have good vision, despite spending their lives in the dark, icy depths of the Arctic. A new study shows that their visual system remains intact thanks to high DNA-repair gene expression, and this could help us understand vision loss in humans.
Nature Communications, 5 January 2026
Did you know?
Data centres… in space? As AI demand explodes, Google, SpaceX and Nvidia are exploring data centres in Earth orbit — but the idea is costly and technically complex.
95%
This is the accuracy of FIT (Footprint Identification Technology), an AI image processing technology that identifies small mammals from their footprints. Closely related species — once distinguishable only through DNA analysis — can now be told apart using easier and less invasive methods.
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 27 January 2026
A pear with pedigree
After 30 years of research, the Kiara® pear recently hit the French market. A cross between two varieties — Pierre Corneille and Harrow Sweet — it is flavourful, keeps for up to seven months and resists fire blight, a bacterial disease affecting fruit trees. Unlike recent pear varieties, Kiara® is free to grow: farmers do not need a licence to cultivate it.
French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment (INRAE), Paris, Île-de-France, 12 January 2026
55%
This is how much of our lifespan is shaped by the genes we inherit from our parents. By studying cohorts of twins and filtering out external causes of death, researchers found a much stronger genetic influence than previously thought. This new finding could fundamentally change how we think about ageing.
Science, 29 January 2026
Did you know?
In France, 45% of girls stop playing sports before the age of 15, held back by puberty-related discomfort, periods, social pressure and body ideals shaped by social media.
MGEN, 13 January 2026
Gravity-free fitness
Aboard the International Space Station, French astronaut Sophie Adenot is testing E4D, a revolutionary all-in-one workout system developed by the European Space Agency (ESA). The high-tech machine combines strength training, cycling and rowing in a single setup. With AI-powered motion capture, she can correct her form independently, helping her — France’s second woman in space — preserve bone and muscle mass.
Esa, 16 January 2026
Mind blanking: a visible phenomenon
Are we always thinking when awake? No, according to a new study, which found that during episodes of “mind blanking”, the mind is not focused on any mental content. Distinct from concentration or daydreaming, this state can now be identified through specific EEG patterns and an AI algorithm developed by researchers.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), 23 December 2025
95%
This is the accuracy of FIT (Footprint Identification Technology), an AI image processing technology that identifies small mammals from their footprints. Closely related species — once distinguishable only through DNA analysis — can now be told apart using easier and less invasive methods.
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 27 January 2026
Did you know?
The oldest known vertebrates, from 518 million years ago, had four eyes. In some modern species, two have evolved into an organ that regulates the day/night cycle and hormone production.
Nature, 21 January 2026
The ice is melting, not the bears
The health of polar bear populations around Norway’s Svalbard archipelago has improved, despite shrinking sea ice. This surprising trend is linked to the recovery of land-based prey once overexploited by humans, such as reindeer, common seals and walruses. However, scientists caution that this local success cannot offset the long-term, irreversible loss of their primary sea-ice habitat.
Scientific Reports, 29 January 2026
North Sea: Europe’s green powerhouse
Nine European countries are planning to build the world’s largest green energy hub and install 300 GW of offshore wind capacity in the North Sea by 2050. The goal is to secure energy supplies, cut carbon emissions and boost Europe’s energy independence.
Third North Sea Summit, 26 January 2026.
Superhydrophobic
This aluminium tube remains buoyant even when pierced or submerged for extended periods. By combining a superhydrophobic surface with a large trapped air bubble — inspired by water spiders — this design offers a blueprint for safer ships, floating platforms and new marine energy systems.
Advanced Functional Materials, 27 January 2026
Ancient disease in question
Did syphilis originate in the Americas or in Europe? Genome sequencing of Treponema pallidum, the bacterium responsible for syphilis, extracted from a 5,500-year-old hunter-gatherer found in present-day Colombia, has reignited the debate, suggesting the disease already existed in the Americas before Europeans arrived.
University of Lausanne, 26 January 2026
Polarised by courtship
This is the mating display of a male cuttlefish: a horizontal and vertical pattern made of polarised light, visible to females but completely invisible to us. Scientists used a camera fitted with a specialised sensor to capture the light. This discovery suggests polarised light may be a far more common visible reproductive signal in animals than previously thought.
PNAS, 26 January 2026
Did you know?
Even in small doses, aspartame harms heart and brain health in mice, raising questions about dietary guidelines for humans.
Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy, January 2026
5.5 days
This is how long it could take for two satellites to collide if their navigation fails, for example during a solar storm. Back in 2018, before the rapid growth of megaconstellations like Starlink, satellites had 164 days to avoid a crash.
ArXiv, 8 January 2026
Did you know?
We are overdrawing our water reserves. Around the world, lakes are shrinking, 70% of groundwater is being depleted, and three out of four people already live under water stress.
United Nations, 20 January 2026
Imminent break-up
This satellite image shows a close-up of iceberg A23a, once the world’s largest. It calved from Antarctica in 1986 at around 4,000 km² (more than double the size of Greater London) and has since drifted 2,000 km into the South Atlantic. Now about 1,000 km², it is breaking up but remains one of the largest drifting icebergs on the high seas.
Esa, 16 January 2026
Between solid and liquid
A crystal just one atom thick doesn’t melt all at once; instead, it transitions through a rare ‘hexatic phase’ between solid and liquid states. This phase, observed for the first time, sheds new light on the physics of two-dimensional materials, which are crucial for advancements in electronics and nanotechnology.
Science, 4 December 2025
Cometary knots
A striking new image from the James Webb Space Telescope has revealed the Helix: the closest planetary nebula to Earth at 650 light-years away. Captured in near-infrared, this nebula reveals thousands of cometary knots: dense globules of gas and dust shaped by the fierce radiation of a dying star. It offers a haunting glimpse of our own Sun’s fate, some 5 billion years from now.
Esa, 20 January 2026
The oldest painted hand
A 67,800-year-old hand stencil found on Sulawesi, an Indonesian island east of Borneo, is now the world’s oldest known painting. It shows that Homo sapiens were creating symbols at the gateway to Australia long before they appeared in Europe’s decorated caves and were living in the region 15,000 years earlier than previously thought.
Nature, 21 January 2026
9.4%
This is the percentage of people in France who have tried cocaine at least once, up sharply since 2000, when it stood at just 1.8%. What is driving the increase? More cocaine from Latin America, lower prices in Europe, expanding trafficking routes and dealers selling online. And it’s no longer just about partying: some people now use it to work harder or cope with stress.
Inserm targeted collective expert review: Cocaine, 22 January 2026
