Most Americans find keeping up with the news quite depressing. In fact, only 7% say the news makes them feel happy or empowered, compared with approximately four in ten who say it makes them feel angry or sad, according to a Pew Research Center report. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] But it wasn’t all doom and gloom in 2025. There were positive developments in the science and climate sectors, in particular, that show progress is still possible, even if it does not always make the headlines. Here are seven good news stories you may have missed this year. Antarctic Ozone hole shrinks  The ozone hole over Antarctica has shrunk to its fifth-smallest size in more than three decades, according to NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The reduction has been made possible by regulations on “ozone-depleting” substances outlined under the Montreal Protocol—an international environmental treaty intended to protect the ozone layer. A weaker polar vortex, a low-pressure system of cold air, also contributed to the reduction. The ozone layer functions as a global shield against harmful levels of ultraviolet solar radiation. A weakened ozone layer can increase rates of skin cancer, cataracts, and significantly affect crops. “Since peaking around the year 2000, levels of ozone-depleting substances in the Antarctic stratosphere have declined by about a third relative to pre-ozone-hole levels,” said Stephen Montzka, senior scientist with NOAA’s Global Monitoring Laboratory.   Advances in the search for an HIV cure  Melbourne researchers are moving closer towards an HIV cure after scientists discovered…

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Most Americans find keeping up with the news quite depressing. In fact, only 7% say the news makes them feel happy or empowered, compared with approximately four in ten who say it makes them feel angry or sad, according to a Pew Research Center report. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] But it wasn’t all doom and gloom in 2025. There were positive developments in the science and climate sectors, in particular, that show progress is still possible, even if it does not always make the headlines. Here are seven good news stories you may have missed this year. Antarctic Ozone hole shrinks  The ozone hole over Antarctica has shrunk to its fifth-smallest size in more than three decades, according to NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The reduction has been made possible by regulations on “ozone-depleting” substances outlined under the Montreal Protocol—an international environmental treaty intended to protect the ozone layer. A weaker polar vortex, a low-pressure system of cold air, also contributed to the reduction. The ozone layer functions as a global shield against harmful levels of ultraviolet solar radiation. A weakened ozone layer can increase rates of skin cancer, cataracts, and significantly affect crops. “Since peaking around the year 2000, levels of ozone-depleting substances in the Antarctic stratosphere have declined by about a third relative to pre-ozone-hole levels,” said Stephen Montzka, senior scientist with NOAA’s Global Monitoring Laboratory.   Advances in the search for an HIV cure  Melbourne researchers are moving closer towards an HIV cure after scientists discovered…

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