Accurate river water level estimation is crucial for flood prevention, disaster mitigation and water resource management, yet strong non-stationarity and nonlinearity in complex plain river-network regions pose significant challenges to conventional approaches.

Masato Ota, Assistant Professor at the National Institute for Fusion Science, National Institutes for Natural Sciences (at the time of the research, a graduate student at the Graduate School of Science, Osaka University); Youichi Sakawa, Associate Professor at the Institute of Laser Science, Osaka University; Ryutaro Matsui, Specially Appointed Associate Professor at the National Institute for Fusion Science, National Institutes for Natural Sciences (at the time of the research, Assistant Professor at Kyoto University); Yasuaki Kishimoto, Program-Specific Researcher at the Institute for Chemical Research and Program-Specific Professor at the Institute of Advanced Energy, Kyoto University; Toshinori Yabuuchi, Chief Scientist at the Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute; and Yuji Fukuda, Senior Principal Researcher at the Kansai Institute for Photon Science (KPSI), National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology (QST)—has developed a new measurement technique that simultaneously captures diffraction signals ranging from ultra-small angles to wide angles with a single camera when a single X-ray pulse is irradiated onto a structure. By combining this method with an X-ray free-electron laser, the team derived the rarefaction velocity of high-energy-density plasma on a picosecond timescale across a broad range of spatial scales—from nanometers to submicrometers. A comparison of experimental results and numerical simulations revealed that even an increase of just a few nanometers in the size of the initial plasma on a solid surface reduces the efficiency with which the laser is absorbed by the microstructured solid to approximately one-fourth.

How can a spectrometer measure accurately on the scorching lunar farside? A new calibration framework for the Chang’e-6 Lunar Mineral Spectrometer corrected heat-induced spectral distortions, improving repeated measurement consistency by about 65%. The high-fidelity in situ data now bridge orbital observations, lunar surface measurements, and returned sample analyses, offering a clearer cross-scale view of the Chang’e-6 landing area.

Conventional second-harmonic generation microscopy is highly sensitive to symmetry, but it usually cannot directly read phase information. Researchers at Beijing Normal University developed an angular-polarization-engineered interferometric SHG microscope that uses a rotatable monolayer MoSe₂ reference placed between the objective and the sample. The system enables high-contrast phase-sensitive imaging of MoS₂ inversion twins and achieves an interference contrast as high as 0.96.

A new light-controlled organic semiconductor developed at Osaka Metropolitan University shows charge-transport performance comparable to leading organic semiconductor materials, offering promise for future “flexible” electronics.

A study conducted by researchers from ESPOL, the University of Cagliari (Italy) and the Technical University of Manabí (UTM) used satellite radar images to investigate subtle ground movements at Guagua Pichincha, Rucu Pichincha, Pululahua and Cayambe between 2017 and 2024.

A research team led by Senior Researcher Minyoung Lee and Principal Researcher Sunggyu Park of the Advanced Bio and Healthcare Materials Research Division at the Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS), headed by President Chul-jin Choi, has developed a label-free surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) analysis technology that rapidly detects extremely low concentrations of viable bacteria by directly growing plasmonic metal nanostructures on and around bacterial cells.

Scientists at the Institute of Science Tokyo have developed a cholesterol-conjugated PMO/RNA heteroduplex oligonucleotide (Chol-HDO[PMO]) designed for treating disorders of the central nervous system. This advanced nucleic acid technology enables precise targeting of diverse genes while maintaining a strong balance between therapeutic efficacy and safety, offering a versatile platform for developing improved therapies for a wide range of neurological diseases.