Research & Discovery

This page highlights the astonishing amount of scientific discovery happening at Columbia, one of the world’s leading research universities. 

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Clockwise from top left: An iceberg stranded on a submerged rock in northwest Greenland (Karl Zinglersen); homo erectus crania from the Turkana Rift (John Rowan); a mosquito feeding (Alex Wild); a shell of thick gas and dust (red) expelled from the outer layers of a star as its core collapses into a black hole. The inner regions show a heated ball of gas (white) continuing to fall into the central black hole. (Keith Miller, Caltech/IPAC - SELab)
Columbia University Discoveries in 2025-26 to Know About

Here are some of the top scientific research findings of the past academic year.


 

FIND OUT MORE

The Pepacton Reservoir.
CLIMATE
Illustration of a person's face with sound bars.
ENGINEERING
A bottle of colorful pills tipped over
HEALTH
A Modular Neuronal Network (MoNNet) with interconnected spheroids, each one featuring several types of brain cells.
NEUROSCIENCE

COLUMBIA SCIENCE IN THE NEWS

What to Know About Alpha-Gal Syndrome, the Life-Threatening Meat Allergy Caused by Tick Bites

Associated Press
June 17, 2026

As A.I. Makes Strides in Mathematics, Mathematicians Urge Caution

The New York Times
June 4, 2026

So, You Got Bit by a Tick. Here’s Exactly What to Do Next.

The Washington Post
May 21, 2026

RECENT STORIES

Jeannette Wing, executive vice president for research and professor of computer science at Columbia University, and Christa Peters-Lidard, director of NASA Goddard’s Sciences and Exploration directorate, at a signing ceremony on Monday, Dec. 16.
Announcement

Columbia and NASA Deepen Ties

Columbia and NASA signed a “collaborative Space Act Agreement” to jointly advance research and education opportunities.

A tiny 3D-printed microneedle designed by a close-knit team of Columbia physicians and engineers.
Research

The Most Interesting Needle in the World?

Future treatments for hearing loss could rely on a tiny 3D-printed microneedle designed by Columbia physicians and engineers.

Ioannis (John) Kymissis, W. Ian Lipkin, and Konstantin Petrukhin
Awards & Milestones

Three Columbia Faculty Elected to National Academy of Inventors

Ioannis (John) Kymissis, W. Ian Lipkin, and Konstantin Petrukhin will be officially inducted as fellows at a ceremony in June.

A human ovary.
Research

Studying Ovaries to Understand How We All Age

New findings from a Columbia researcher suggest that ovarian aging has lessons for us all.

Illustration of a person showing their brain and gastrointestinal tract.
Research

Antidepressants May Act in Gut to Reduce Depression and Anxiety

Targeting antidepressant medications to cells in the gut could cause fewer side effects than current treatments.

Ruben Gonzalez
Office Hours

A New Finding About Protein Motions Has Big Implications for Drug Development

Ruben Gonzalez records movies to discover how biomolecules’ motions determine their functions. He has a major new finding.

A patient's hands in the foreground, and a psychotherapist in the background.
Research

Study Finds Uneven Gains in Psychotherapy Use Among Adults

Psychotherapy has risen among younger adults, women, college-educated individuals, and those with higher family incomes.

Columbia C at Muscota Marsh
Campus & Community

2024 Year in Review: The Top 12 Stories That Garnered Your Attention on ‘Columbia News’

What stories grabbed the attention of our readers in 2024? The results may surprise you.

This artist's illustration depicts a reconstruction of what the Firefly Sparkle galaxy looked like about 600 million years after the big bang if it wasn’t stretched and distorted by a natural effect known as gravitational lensing. This concept is based on images and data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. (NASA, ESA, CSA, Ralf Crawford [STScI]).
In the Lab

Kartheik Iyer Found a Milky Way-Like Galaxy, and Nicknamed It the Firefly Sparkle

Iyer, a NASA Hubble fellow at Columbia, has also developed an AI-powered search tool for astronomers.

A 3D rendering of high-energy particles from cosmic rays.
Research

A New Discovery About the Source of the Vast Energy in Cosmic Rays

New research suggests that these ultra-high energy rays derive their energy from magnetic turbulence.

Integrated circuit at the core of the BIOSYNC implant will interface to the cell reservoirs electrically and optically.
Awards & Milestones

Interdisciplinary Columbia Team Wins ARPA-H Award for Up to $41 Million

Engineering school and medical center researchers will build a wireless bioelectronic device to treat obesity and diabetes.

Clockwise from top left: Swirling hydrogen emissions and stars in an area of the night sky known as the cone nebula. The image was taken by the MDW Survey; Illustration of a brain dividing the day into chapters, including "commuting," "meeting," "lunching," and "relaxing"; illustration of a new technique to deliver anti-cancer cargo to the lungs; image of E. coli bacteria, grown in culture and adhered to a cover slip; illustration of a human brain surrounded by neurons.
Research

13 Columbia Science Discoveries That Had an Impact in 2024

Columbia researchers made major breakthroughs in cancer research, neuroscience, earth science, and other fields this year.