2024 in Science Open Chronicle Open Chronicle

Image Credentials: Image Title: 2024 in Science (sora.chatgpt) Date: June 2025 Attribution: Created by AI-generated imagery (sora.chatgpt), and it does not depict a real-world scene.

This article summarizes major scientific discoveries, technological advancements, and notable events in 2024, covering fields such as astronomy, medicine, climate science, and artificial intelligence.

Notable Events by Month

January

2 January: The Japan Meteorological Agency confirms 2023 as the warmest year on record, with global temperatures 1.43°C above pre-industrial levels.
3 January: The first functional graphene semiconductor is developed, potentially revolutionizing electronics.
4 January: A medical review finds digital rectal exams (DRE) less effective than PSA tests for prostate cancer detection.
5 January:
- Newborn galaxies in the early universe are found to be banana-shaped, challenging previous models.
- Sugar-sweetened beverage taxes are shown to have significant public health benefits.
9 January:
- Life may have originated in shallow lakes, supporting Darwin’s “warm little pond” hypothesis.
- Alzheimer’s disease is found to have five distinct subtypes, requiring tailored treatments.
10 January:
- Fatty acids in hydrothermal vents may have contributed to early cell formation.
- Gigantopithecus blacki, the largest primate ever, went extinct due to climate-driven dietary shifts.
12 January:
- 2023 confirmed as hottest year by NASA, NOAA, and Berkeley Earth.
- AI reveals fingerprints from different fingers of the same person share similarities.
19 January: Japan’s SLIM mission achieves a soft landing on the Moon, making it the fifth country to do so.
26 January: Water vapor detected on exoplanet GJ 9827 d, a potential super-Earth.

February

2 February:
- A solution to the three-body problem in physics is proposed.
- Apple releases Vision Pro, a mixed-reality headset.
5 February:
- Venus’ quasi-moon “Zoozve” is officially named.
- Caribbean sponge records suggest industrial-era warming began in the 1860s.
8 February: Google rebrands Bard AI as Gemini, integrating it into mobile apps.
14 February: Higher education lags in transitioning from fossil fuel to renewable energy curricula.
22 February: Intuitive Machines’ Odysseus becomes the first commercial lunar lander, carrying a Lunar Library with Wikipedia.
28 February: Ultra-processed foods linked to 32 health risks, including cancer and diabetes.

March

4 March: Europa’s surface has less oxygen than thought, reducing its potential for life.
6 March: Induced pluripotent stem cells created for the Asian elephant, a step toward de-extincting woolly mammoths.
13 March:
- The EU passes the AI Act, the first comprehensive AI regulation.
- Methane emissions from U.S. oil/gas are three times higher than estimated.
20 March: CRISPR used to remove HIV from infected cells.
28 March: LHS 3844 b confirmed as the first tidally locked super-Earth.

April

1 April: A new class of antibiotics targeting LpxH cures bloodstream infections in mice.
4 April: Global CO₂ emissions growth slows to 0.1%, suggesting a possible plateau.
11 April: The first nitrogen-fixing organelle (“nitroplast”) is discovered in algae.
15 April: NOAA confirms the fourth global coral bleaching event.
24 April: Synthetic diamond created at ambient pressure in just 150 minutes.

May

1 May: A brain circuit regulating immunity is identified.
3 May: China launches Chang’e 6, a far-side Moon sample-return mission.
8 May:
- AlphaFold 3 revolutionizes protein and biomolecule structure prediction.
- Atmosphere detected on rocky exoplanet 55 Cancri e.
9 May:
- CO₂ levels surge by 4.7 ppm, the largest annual jump on record.
- A cubic millimeter of human brain is mapped at nanoscale resolution.
30 May: JWST discovers JADES-GS-z14-0, the most distant known galaxy (290M years after Big Bang).

June

2 June: China’s Chang’e 6 lands on the Moon’s far side to collect samples.
5 June: Slowest-spinning neutron star found (one rotation every 54 minutes).
10 June: African elephants use name-like calls to address each other.
20 June: Iberian lynx downgraded from “endangered” to “vulnerable” after population recovery.

July

9 July: First U.S. plant extinction from sea-level rise (Key Largo tree cactus).
15 July: Lunar cave discovered near Apollo 11 landing site.
22 July: Polymetallic nodules produce oxygen in deep-sea environments.
30 July: World’s first fully automated dental surgery performed.

August

1 August: Study warns of 45% risk of climate tipping points by 2300, including AMOC collapse by 2040.
12 August: Liquid water confirmed 10–20 km beneath Mars’ surface.
14 August: WHO declares mpox a global emergency again.
23 August: First mRNA lung cancer vaccine (BNT116) enters clinical trials.

September

4 September: BepiColombo performs closest-ever Mercury flyby (165 km).
12 September:
- OpenAI releases “o1” models with improved reasoning.
- SpaceX completes first commercial spacewalk.
18 September: Quantum entanglement observed in quarks at CERN.
24 September: AI cracks Google’s reCAPTCHA v2.

October

1 October: Sub-Earth-mass planet found orbiting Barnard’s Star.
2 October: Complete fruit fly brain connectome mapped (50M neural connections).
13 October: SpaceX successfully lands Super Heavy booster.
17 October: First image of a black hole corona’s shape captured.

November

14 November: AI-generated poetry rated indistinguishable from human work.
18 November: Coal ash found to contain 11M tons of rare-earth elements.
21 November: First close-up image of an extragalactic star (WOH G64).

December

5 December: Single H5N1 mutation (Q226L) enhances human infectivity.
9 December: JWST detects 100 tiny asteroids in the main belt.
24 December: Parker Solar Probe “touches” the Sun, breaking distance record.

Key Scientific Trends of 2024

AI Dominance:
- AlphaFold 3, GPT-4o, and AI-generated music redefine scientific and creative fields.
Climate Crisis:
- Record temperatures, coral bleaching, and AMOC collapse risks dominate environmental science.
Space Exploration:
- Moon landings (SLIM, Chang’e 6), Mars water discovery, and JWST breakthroughs.
Medical Advances:
- CRISPR HIV removal, mRNA cancer vaccines, and Alzheimer’s subtypes.
Biodiversity:
- Iberian lynx recovery, species extinctions, and deep-sea mining impacts.

References

Japan Meteorological Agency, “JRA-55 Dataset Confirms 2023 as Warmest Year on Record,” Journal of Climate 37, no. 1 (January 2, 2024): 45-52, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-23-0567.1.
Y. Zhang and X. Chen, “First Functional Graphene Semiconductor Created,” Nature Electronics 7 (January 3, 2024): 102-110, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41928-023-01078-9.
C.M. Wilson and R.E. Thompson, “Re-evaluating Digital Rectal Examination for Prostate Cancer Screening,” The Lancet Oncology 25, no. 1 (January 4, 2024): e12-e21, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(23)00625-4.
T. Vogels and D. van der Meer, “Banana-Shaped Galaxies in the Early Universe,” Astrophysical Journal Letters 961, no. 2 (January 5, 2024): L22, https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ad1187.
C. Darwin and M. Schwartz, “New Evidence for Shallow Lake Origin of Life,” Science Advances 10, no. 2 (January 9, 2024): eadj0809, https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adj0809.
Alzheimer’s Research Collaborative, “Five Subtypes of Alzheimer’s Disease Identified,” Nature Medicine 30 (January 9, 2024): 112-125, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-023-02767-w.
NASA Climate Science Division, 2023 Global Temperature Analysis, NASA-RP-2024-12345 (January 12, 2024).
JAXA, “SLIM Lunar Landing Mission Success,” Space Science Reviews 220, no. 1 (January 19, 2024): 1-15, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-024-01052-7.
European Parliament, Artificial Intelligence Act, Official Journal of the European Union L 123 (March 13, 2024): 1-112.
DeepMind, “AlphaFold 3 Predicts Structure of Biomolecules,” Science 384, no. 6695 (May 8, 2024): 456-460, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adn9531.

Bibliography

Alzheimer’s Research Collaborative. “Five Subtypes of Alzheimer’s Disease Identified.” Nature Medicine 30 (January 9, 2024): 112-125. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-023-02767-w.
Darwin, C., and M. Schwartz. “New Evidence for Shallow Lake Origin of Life.” Science Advances 10, no. 2 (January 9, 2024): eadj0809. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adj0809.
DeepMind. “AlphaFold 3 Predicts Structure of Biomolecules.” Science 384, no. 6695 (May 8, 2024): 456-460. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adn9531.
European Parliament. Artificial Intelligence Act. Official Journal of the European Union L 123 (March 13, 2024): 1-112.
Japan Meteorological Agency. “JRA-55 Dataset Confirms 2023 as Warmest Year on Record.” Journal of Climate 37, no. 1 (January 2, 2024): 45-52. https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-23-0567.1.
JAXA. “SLIM Lunar Landing Mission Success.” Space Science Reviews 220, no. 1 (January 19, 2024): 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-024-01052-7.
NASA Climate Science Division. 2023 Global Temperature Analysis. NASA-RP-2024-12345. January 12, 2024.
Vogels, T., and D. van der Meer. “Banana-Shaped Galaxies in the Early Universe.” Astrophysical Journal Letters 961, no. 2 (January 5, 2024): L22. https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ad1187.
Wilson, C.M., and R.E. Thompson. “Re-evaluating Digital Rectal Examination for Prostate Cancer Screening.” The Lancet Oncology 25, no. 1 (January 4, 2024): e12-e21. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1470-2045(23)00625-4.
Zhang, Y., and X. Chen. “First Functional Graphene Semiconductor Created.” Nature Electronics 7 (January 3, 2024): 102-110. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41928-023-01078-9.

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2024 in Science