THE YEAR'S IMPRESSIONS: THE MARKS OF TIME
JAN 19 - 30
GOLDEN DUCK GALLERY
FEB 2 - 20
SORS GALLERY
GRAND OPENING
GOLDEN DUCK GALLERY
January 22, 2027
18:00
Art serves no practical function—and that is exactly why it is indispensable. While technology and daily artifacts provide the "how" of our existence, art provides the "why."
At the Golden Duck Gallery, we believe that our collective memory of history isn't built on spreadsheets or machinery, but on the songs, posters, literature, and visual impressions of an era. We remember the 1920s through Jazz and Art Deco; we remember the 1960s through psychedelic posters and protest songs.
Fingerprints 2026 is our second step towards a radical, new approach to art as a "temporal context." It is a living time capsule, capturing the pulse of 2026 at the very moment it beats. By documenting the year in real-time, we bypass the distortions of nostalgia, the bitterness of hindsight, and the filters of political revisionism. We are capturing the "now" before it becomes the "then."
CONCEPT
- ART AS A TIME CAPSULE -
The Fingerprints 2026 project aims to capture the most interesting, captivating, and significant events of each week of the year 2026 in real-time.
The weekly and monthly milestones - the most important and impactful news or events of each week - will be meticulously hand-picked by Catherine Varadi, founder and curator of the Golden Duck Gallery, and published continuously on this page.
Then a lottery takes place, where the chance chooses the artist for each week of the year.
The artist assigned to a specific week or month will choose one of the published events and translate it into a visual masterpiece using their own unique style and perspective.
SPECIAL SERIES
DECEMBER DREAMS
December is always the time when we close the year and dream of the next one. We would like 5 artists to depict how they think this December will feel and look like. In the next Fingerprints 2027, we will compare the predictions from 2026 to the actual impressions, that will be created next year based on the events of December of 2026. The Gallery will pick the 5 artists outside of the standard Lottery procedure.
THE YEAR'S IMPRESSION
The Gallery will pick 1 artist who will create the Grand Image of the Year: the YEAR'S IMPRESSION. This will be the crown jewel of the exhibition, and a great honor to the artist.
Artists can approach their assigned week through
one of four conceptual frameworks:
1. Illustration: A direct, literal depiction of the event itself (e.g., a painting capturing a historic presidential speech on-site).
2. Deduction: An exploration of the underlying, broader issue that led to the event (e.g., an artwork addressing global warming in response to the melting of a major iceberg).
3. Impression: The artist’s raw, subjective, and emotional reaction to the event.
4. Reflection: A philosophical dialogue where the artist raises universal questions connected to the event or the phenomenon, moving beyond the bare facts.
Style Limitations: There are absolutely no style or technical limitations. All mediums, techniques, and avant-garde approaches are welcome.
ARTWORK SPECIFICATIONS
Golden Duck Gallery asks all participants to strictly adhere to the following technical parameters:
Size:
-
All weekly artworks must be exactly 40x50 cm or 50x40 cm
-
All monthly artworks must be 50x60 vertical artworks
-
The Image of the year artwork must be 70x50 (50x70) cm or above
Creation Date: Artworks must be created exclusively in 2026, specifically for this project or fully aligned with the concept of the depicted event.
Presentation: All artworks must include a detailed concept description explaining the underlying philosophical meanings, your personal views, motivations, and the emotional context behind the artwork.
Readiness: All artworks must arrive ready to hang.
Format: Preferably stretched canvas without a frame, or any other material (paper, board, MDF etc.) with a minimal, clean frame that meets the size requirements
Sculptures and 3D creations are also welcome!
Ownership & Gallery Rights: The artist remains the sole owner of the artwork throughout the show. By accepting the nomination, the artist grants the gallery the exclusive right to exhibit the piece for the full duration of the project until its conclusion or potential sale.
APPLICATION PROCESS
PHASE 1
- REGISTRATION FOR THE PROJECT -
To apply for the show, click the "Apply Now" button located on this page and fill in your basic details (Name, Email, and Phone Number).
LOTTERY
After July [...], 2026, the Golden Duck Gallery will host a live event where artists will be assigned to specific calendar weeks entirely by chance through a formal lottery system.
Artists who depict December of 2026 and the Image of the year will be chosen by the Gallery separately, not in the lottery system.
DISCLAIMER
Please note that a successful lottery selection constitutes a formal obligation to participate in the Fingerprints 2026 exhibition.
This commitment can only be terminated in the event of force majeure, or by formal email notification sent to submissions@goldenduckgallery.com at least 2 months prior to the exhibition opening.
The Golden Duck Gallery informs the artists, that if the assigned artist fails to submit the artwork within the deadline without a force majeure issue and/or fails to inform the gallery about the inability to present the artworks, the gallery shall terminate all interactions and cooperations with this artist.
PHASE 2
- ARTWORK REGISTRATION -
Once you have created your masterpiece, click the "Register My Artwork" button (available on this page after August 1, 2026).
All submissions must include a detailed concept description explaining the underlying philosophical meanings, your personal views, motivations, and the emotional context behind the artwork.
PHASE 3
- LOGISTICS -
All completed artworks must arrive at the Golden Duck Gallery in Budapest no later than January 15, 2027. Shipping and transit expenses are to be covered by the artist.
EXHIBITION
The exhibition of Fingerprints of 2026 will take place in the Golden Duck Gallery in January 2026. After that, the exhibition will be transferred to the SORS GALLERY, where the collection could be seen for another 3 weeks of time.
IMPRESSION OF THE YEAR
ARTIST UNKNOWN YET
MONTHLY EVENT LIST
For every week of 2026 so far, three world stories and three Hungarian stories, chosen for their impact on humanity and on people in Hungary and Europe, and for how well they translate into an abstract image. Each month opens with a suggested top three for the month as a whole. Weeks run Monday to Sunday; week 1 is the short week of 1 to 4 January and week 40 ends on Sunday 4 October, so October has no monthly selection yet.
Each entry gives the date, one line on what happened, a link to a news report, and a suggested visual motif. Casualty figures are as reported at the time; several tolls (Venezuela, Colombia, Nepal and Tibet, Ceuta) rose later. A few links go to Hungarian-language reports where no English one was found. Updated 13 October 2026.
*contain article links
January
Top 3 of January
-
US forces capture Nicolás Maduro (3 Jan)
A US raid removes Venezuela's president, the first of the year's US military interventions abroad.
Visual: A hand reaching down from above and lifting a single figure out of a map. -
Iran's lethal crackdown on nationwide protests (8–9 Jan)
Rights groups count thousands killed in two days of shooting at protesters; seven weeks later the Iran war begins.
Visual: A grid of lit windows going dark one by one. -
European troops deploy to Greenland (14–15 Jan)
Denmark and its European allies send soldiers to Greenland as Washington presses to acquire the island, the sharpest transatlantic rift in decades.
Visual: Small flags planted far apart on a vast white field.
Week 1 · 1–4 January
World
-
Bulgaria joins the euro (1 Jan)
Bulgaria becomes the 21st member of the eurozone, nearly two decades after joining the EU.
Visual: A new coin slotting into a ring of twenty others. -
US strikes Venezuela and captures Nicolás Maduro (3 Jan)
US airstrikes hit northern Venezuela and US forces seize President Maduro and Cilia Flores, flying them out of the country.
Visual: A hand reaching down from above and lifting a single figure out of a map. -
New Year fire at a Crans-Montana bar (1 Jan)
A blaze during a New Year's Eve party at a bar in the Swiss ski resort kills around 40 people and injures more than 100.
Visual: Raised glasses turning to embers against snow.
Hungary
-
Minimum wage rises 11% (1 Jan)
The gross minimum wage rises to 322,800 forints and the guaranteed minimum wage by 7%, in an election year.
Visual: A pay slip growing taller than the hand that holds it. -
Mothers of two become exempt from income tax (1 Jan)
Mothers over 40 with two children no longer pay personal income tax on earned income, a flagship family-policy measure.
Visual: A tax form folded into a paper cradle. -
Pensions rise and a 14th-month pension begins (1 Jan)
Pensions rise 3.6% and the first quarter of a new 14th-month pension is scheduled for February.
Visual: A calendar with fourteen pages instead of twelve.
Week 2 · 5–11 January
World
-
Iran's lethal crackdown on nationwide protests (8–9 Jan)
Security forces fire on protesters in hundreds of cities; rights groups count thousands of deaths, and some later estimates run far higher.
Visual: A grid of lit windows going dark one by one. -
Syrian army and Kurdish-led SDF clash in Aleppo (6 Jan)
Fighting erupts between government forces and the SDF, beginning the offensive that ends the Kurdish-run northeast as a separate entity.
Visual: A city map split by a line that keeps moving. -
US seizes a Russian-flagged shadow-fleet tanker (7 Jan)
US forces board a tanker in the North Atlantic despite a Russian submarine escort, escalating the fight over sanctioned oil.
Visual: A small ship held between two shadows beneath the waves.
Hungary
-
Béla Tarr dies at 70 (6 Jan)
The director of Sátántangó and The Turin Horse, known for long, bleak black-and-white takes, dies in Budapest.
Visual: One unbroken long take: wind, mud and a horizon that does not move. -
Orbán opens the election year: "Hungary will not leave the EU" (5 Jan)
At his annual international press conference, Orbán frames 2026 around war, energy, migration and sovereignty, saying the EU will fall apart on its own.
Visual: A lectern facing a wall of microphones, all pointed one way. -
Magyar's open letter to Fico over the Beneš decrees (6–13 Jan)
Péter Magyar opposes a Slovak law penalising criticism of the post-war Beneš decrees; Slovakia's president answers that the word "Felvidék" is an insult.
Visual: A border line drawn straight through a family photograph.
Week 3 · 12–18 January
World
-
European troops deploy to Greenland (14–15 Jan)
Denmark launches Operation Arctic Endurance and allied European soldiers arrive in Greenland as Washington pushes to acquire the island.
Visual: Small flags planted far apart on a vast white field. -
EU and Mercosur sign their trade agreement (17 Jan)
After a quarter-century of talks, Ursula von der Leyen signs the EU–Mercosur partnership in Asunción, Paraguay.
Visual: Two continents stitched together by shipping lanes. -
High-speed trains collide near Adamuz, Spain (18 Jan)
A derailed train is hit by another in Andalusia, killing 46 in Spain's deadliest rail crash in a decade.
Visual: Two parallel lines bending into each other.
Hungary
-
Election date set for 12 April (13 Jan)
President Tamás Sulyok fixes the parliamentary election, starting the campaign that will end Fidesz's 16 years in power.
Visual: A calendar page with a single date circled and a clock beginning to count down. -
Hungary grants asylum to Poland's former justice minister (12 Jan)
Zbigniew Ziobro, wanted in Poland on corruption charges, is given asylum in Budapest, straining ties with Warsaw.
Visual: An open door in one country, a closed one in the next. -
Poll: Tisza 12 points ahead among likely voters (13–14 Jan)
Three months before the vote, polling shows the opposition with a clear lead over Fidesz.
Visual: Two bars of a chart, one stretching past the other.
Week 4 · 19–25 January
World
-
The United States formally leaves the WHO (22 Jan)
The US exit from the World Health Organization takes effect, removing its largest historical funder.
Visual: An empty chair at a round table. -
Davos: Trump says he will not use force to take Greenland (21 Jan)
At the World Economic Forum, the US president keeps pressing for Greenland while ruling out military force, after weeks of strain with Europe.
Visual: An island sealed inside a snow globe, shaken by many hands. -
European Parliament sends the Mercosur deal to court (21 Jan)
By 334 votes to 324, MEPs refer the newly signed trade pact to the EU Court of Justice, threatening a long delay.
Visual: A signed treaty held in a pair of scales.
Hungary
-
Minister Lázár's remark about Roma sparks protests (22–24 Jan)
János Lázár links Roma people with cleaning train toilets; after protests, including toilet brushes left outside his home, he apologises.
Visual: A row of toilet brushes on a doorstep, arranged like a protest line. -
Tisza names Anita Orbán as its foreign-policy chief (24 Jan)
The energy-security expert promises to anchor Hungary in the West and end its dependence on Russia; she later becomes foreign minister.
Visual: A compass needle being reset by hand. -
Hungary blocks the Polymarket betting site (19 Jan)
Regulators cut access to the prediction market, where traders were betting on the outcome of Hungary's election.
Visual: Dice frozen in mid-air over a ballot box.
Week 5 · 26 January – 1 February
World
-
India and the EU sign a free trade agreement (27 Jan)
After nearly 20 years of talks, the deal creates a free trade zone of about two billion people.
Visual: Two billion threads woven into one cloth. -
Rubaya coltan mine collapse, DR Congo (28 Jan)
More than 200 people die when the mine collapses; coltan from the region ends up in phones and laptops worldwide.
Visual: A smartphone casting a shadow shaped like a mine shaft. -
Storm Kristin batters Portugal and Spain (28 Jan)
Winds above 200 km/h kill several people, leave hundreds of thousands without power and cause billions of euros in damage.
Visual: A coastline drawn by a single violent brushstroke.
Hungary
-
Budapest's mayor is charged over Pride (28 Jan)
Prosecutors charge Gergely Karácsony for organising the 2025 Budapest Pride that the government had banned.
Visual: A rainbow seen through the bars of a courtroom railing. -
Orbán accuses Ukraine of election interference (26 Jan)
Budapest summons Ukraine's ambassador, making Kyiv a central theme of the Fidesz campaign.
Visual: A ballot box with a foreign shadow falling across it. -
Rock-and-roll legend Miklós Fenyő dies at 78 (31 Jan)
The Hungária frontman, who brought rock and roll to Hungarian audiences under communism, dies; tributes come from across the political divide. (Hungarian-language report.)
Visual: A jukebox playing to an empty dance floor.
February
Top 3 of February
-
US and Israel strike Iran; Khamenei is killed (28 Feb)
The start of the Iran war: the Supreme Leader is killed, Iran closes the Strait of Hormuz and fuel prices rise worldwide, including in Hungary.
Visual: A chessboard without its king, and a narrow strait closing like a zip. -
New START expires (5 Feb)
For the first time in decades, nothing limits the nuclear arsenals of the US and Russia.
Visual: A measuring tape snapping in two. -
Hungary blocks the EU's €90 billion loan to Ukraine (20–24 Feb)
Orbán ties Europe's support for Ukraine to Russian oil flowing through Druzhba, the peak of Budapest's confrontation with Brussels and Kyiv.
Visual: A pipeline bent into the shape of a padlock.
Week 6 · 2–8 February
World
-
New START expires: no limits on US and Russian nuclear arsenals (5 Feb)
For the first time in decades, no treaty caps the strategic nuclear weapons of the two largest nuclear powers.
Visual: A measuring tape snapping in two. -
Milan Cortina Winter Olympics open (6 Feb)
The most spread-out Winter Games in history open with a four-site ceremony and two cauldrons.
Visual: Two flames burning far apart, joined by a single line of light. -
Portugal elects a moderate over the far right (8 Feb)
Socialist António José Seguro defeats André Ventura in the presidential runoff, as voters form a cordon against the far right.
Visual: A single wall of hands holding back a tide.
Hungary
-
Trump endorses Orbán ahead of the election (5 Feb)
The US president gives Viktor Orbán his "complete and total endorsement" for the April vote.
Visual: A megaphone pointed across an ocean. -
German activist Maja T. jailed for eight years (4 Feb)
A Budapest court sentences the German anti-fascist for attacks at a 2023 far-right rally, a case followed closely in Germany.
Visual: A cell door with two flags reflected in its window. -
Tisza publishes its programme: wealth tax and the euro (7 Feb)
The opposition's 240-page manifesto promises a tax on the very rich, euro adoption and an end to EU-funds freezes.
Visual: A thick book opened like a door.
Week 7 · 9–15 February
World
-
Munich Security Conference: "the West vs the West" (13–15 Feb)
Transatlantic tension dominates the annual security gathering, with Europe and the US openly at odds.
Visual: A mirror cracked down the middle, each half reflecting a different face. -
European Parliament approves a list of "safe" countries for asylum (10 Feb)
MEPs back an EU-wide list of safe countries of origin, allowing faster rejection of asylum claims.
Visual: A world map stamped "safe" and "unsafe". -
Bangladesh votes in its first election since the 2024 uprising (12 Feb)
Tarique Rahman's BNP wins a landslide, bringing him back from 17 years in exile to become prime minister.
Visual: A door opening after seventeen winters.
Hungary
-
Samsung's Göd battery plant scandal (9–15 Feb)
Telex reports toxic exposure at the Göd plant and how the government handled it; the story becomes a major campaign issue.
Visual: A battery leaking into a vegetable garden. -
Magyar says he was targeted with a "honey trap" (10–13 Feb)
The opposition leader goes to the police, accusing his opponents of Russian-style compromat ahead of the election.
Visual: A camera lens hidden in a bouquet of flowers. -
Orbán's last state-of-the-nation speech (14 Feb)
"Our work isn't finished yet," Orbán tells supporters; Magyar answers with his own year-in-review the next day.
Visual: Two podiums facing each other across an empty square.
Week 8 · 16–22 February
World
-
AI Impact Summit adopts the New Delhi Declaration (16–21 Feb)
Close to 90 countries and organisations sign a declaration on secure, trusted AI, the first such summit hosted in the Global South.
Visual: Many hands resting on one glowing network. -
Mexican army kills cartel leader "El Mencho" (22 Feb)
The head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel dies in a military operation in Tapalpa, followed by waves of violence.
Visual: A crown falling into a field of agave. -
Winter Olympics close in Verona's Roman arena (22 Feb)
The Games end inside a 2,000-year-old amphitheatre and the Olympic flag passes to the French Alps.
Visual: An ancient stone ring holding a modern flame.
Hungary
-
Hungary blocks the EU's €90 billion loan to Ukraine (20–21 Feb)
Budapest vetoes the loan until Russian oil flows again through the damaged Druzhba pipeline.
Visual: A pipeline bent into the shape of a padlock. -
Rubio in Budapest backs Orbán (16 Feb)
The US Secretary of State tells Orbán that Washington wants him to continue in office.
Visual: A handshake framed through the slot of a ballot box. -
Hungary halts diesel deliveries to Ukraine (18 Feb)
Szijjártó announces a stop to diesel exports until Druzhba oil transit resumes; Slovakia does the same.
Visual: A fuel nozzle tied in a knot.
Week 9 · 23 February – 1 March
World
-
US and Israel strike Iran; Khamenei is killed (28 Feb)
Strikes kill the Supreme Leader and senior officials; Iran retaliates and closes the Strait of Hormuz, starting the Iran war.
Visual: A chessboard without its king, and a narrow strait closing like a zip. -
Pakistan declares "open war" on the Afghan Taliban (26–27 Feb)
Pakistan launches airstrikes on Kabul and Kandahar, turning a border conflict into open war.
Visual: A mountain ridge drawn as a burning fuse. -
Ukraine marks four years of full-scale war (24 Feb)
Four years after Russia's invasion, Kyiv marks the anniversary as US-led peace talks stall.
Visual: Four candles on a cake made of sandbags.
Hungary
-
Orbán halts all support for Ukraine (24 Feb)
On the war's fourth anniversary, Orbán says Hungary will back no aid for Ukraine, including EU aid, until Druzhba oil transit resumes.
Visual: A valve wheel turned to closed. -
Hungary and Slovakia block the EU's 20th Russia sanctions package (23–27 Feb)
The two governments veto new sanctions, leaving the EU without its planned anniversary signal to Moscow.
Visual: Two hands holding a gate shut against twenty-five. -
Freight trains return to the Budapest–Belgrade line (27 Feb)
Freight traffic resumes on the rebuilt, Chinese-financed railway, a flagship of Orbán's "Opening to the East".
Visual: A railway line drawn as a silk thread between two cities.
March
Top 3 of March
-
The Iran war spreads: Lebanon, Kharg Island and Hormuz (2–24 Mar)
Hezbollah joins, the US bombs Iran's main oil terminal and Hormuz stays mostly closed, pushing up energy prices in Europe.
Visual: An island shaped like an oil barrel, ringed by fire. -
Global warming has nearly doubled its pace since 2015 (9–10 Mar)
A study finds warming is accelerating, making a breach of 1.5 °C before 2030 more likely, months before Hungary's hottest summer on record.
Visual: A thermometer drawn as a speedometer with the needle rising. -
Leaked calls expose Szijjártó's ties to Lavrov (23–31 Mar)
Recordings show Hungary's foreign minister helping Moscow on sanctions and elections, shaping the final weeks of the campaign.
Visual: A telephone cord tangled across three borders.
Week 10 · 2–8 March
World
-
Mojtaba Khamenei becomes Iran's Supreme Leader (8 Mar)
The son of the slain leader is chosen as Iran's third Supreme Leader.
Visual: A portrait handed from father to son across a burning frame. -
Hezbollah enters the war; a new Lebanon war begins (2 Mar)
Hezbollah fires on Israel, which answers with hundreds of strikes across Lebanon.
Visual: A border drawn in sparks. -
A potentially habitable super-Earth 10.7 light-years away (6 Mar)
Astronomers confirm GJ 887 d, a planet in the habitable zone of a nearby red dwarf, one of the closest such worlds known.
Visual: A pale dot beside a red star, very close and very far.
Hungary
-
Hungary detains Ukrainian bank couriers carrying cash (5–6 Mar)
Hungarian authorities stop Oschadbank cash vans and their crews; Kyiv calls it hostage-taking and theft.
Visual: An armoured van stopped at a border with its doors open and empty. -
Putin hands two prisoners of war to Szijjártó (4 Mar)
Two Hungarian-Ukrainian soldiers are released after talks in Moscow, a gesture used in the Fidesz campaign.
Visual: Two figures walking out of a long shadow. -
Brussels calls Zelensky's remark about Orbán unacceptable (6 Mar)
The European Commission rebukes Kyiv over words Budapest read as a threat, as the Druzhba dispute escalates.
Visual: Three speech bubbles colliding over a map.
Week 11 · 9–15 March
World
-
US bombs Kharg Island, Iran's oil hub (13 Mar)
American strikes hit military sites on the island that handles most of Iran's oil exports, and oil prices climb.
Visual: An island shaped like an oil barrel, ringed by fire. -
Study confirms global warming has nearly doubled its pace since 2015 (9–10 Mar)
New research finds warming has accelerated, making a breach of 1.5 °C before 2030 more likely.
Visual: A thermometer drawn as a speedometer with the needle rising. -
Oil-starved Cuba confirms talks with Washington (13 Mar)
Under a US oil blockade and nationwide blackouts, President Díaz-Canel confirms negotiations with the Trump administration.
Visual: An island with every light switched off.
Hungary
-
15 March: rival mass rallies in Budapest (15 Mar)
On the national holiday, Orbán's "peace march" and Magyar's "national march" fill the city a month before the vote.
Visual: Two crowds flowing as two rivers that never meet. -
Orbán caps petrol and diesel prices (9–10 Mar)
As the Iran war lifts oil prices, the government reintroduces fuel price caps for Hungarian vehicles.
Visual: A petrol pump with a lid nailed on top. -
Hungarian troops leave Erbil (14 Mar)
Soldiers and diplomats are withdrawn from the Iraqi base after Iranian strikes on the region.
Visual: Empty boot prints leading away from a desert tent.
Week 12 · 16–22 March
World
-
Strike on a Kabul hospital (16 Mar)
Afghanistan says around 400 people were killed when a Pakistani airstrike hit a hospital treating drug users.
Visual: Rows of empty hospital beds under open sky. -
Israel kills Iran's security chief Ali Larijani (17 Mar)
One of the Islamic Republic's most powerful figures dies in a strike on a Tehran safe house.
Visual: A chair at the head of a table, suddenly empty. -
A lab-grown oesophagus restores swallowing (20 Mar)
UCL and Great Ormond Street researchers implant an engineered food pipe in growing pigs, offering hope for babies born without one.
Visual: A tube of living tissue growing like a plant stem.
Hungary
-
Report: Russian intelligence proposed a staged attack on Orbán (21 Mar)
The Washington Post reports Russian agents floated faking an assassination attempt to boost Orbán's campaign; Budapest denies it.
Visual: A stage set with a prop gun and an empty spotlight. -
Hungary and Slovakia agree a new fuel pipeline (17 Mar)
A 127 km pipeline will link MOL's Százhalombatta and Bratislava refineries to steady supplies cut by the Druzhba dispute.
Visual: Two refineries holding hands through the ground. -
CPAC Hungary and the Patriots' rally in Budapest (21 Mar)
Europe's right-wing leaders gather in Budapest three weeks before the vote to back Orbán.
Visual: A crowded stage casting one long shadow.
Week 13 · 23–29 March
World
-
OpenAI shuts down its Sora video app (24 Mar)
Six months after launch, the AI video generator is discontinued, citing costs and shifting priorities.
Visual: A screen of generated images dissolving into static. -
Iran lets "non-hostile" ships through Hormuz (24 Mar)
Tehran tells the UN that ships not linked to the US or Israel may pass, partly reopening the world's key oil route.
Visual: A gate left half open with a guard counting ships. -
Denmark's governing bloc loses its majority (24 Mar)
Mette Frederiksen's coalition falls short in a snap election shaped by the Greenland crisis.
Visual: A red-and-white flag folded in half.
Hungary
-
Leaked call: Szijjártó asked Lavrov to help Fico's party (23 Mar)
A published 2020 transcript suggests Hungary's foreign minister sought Russian help for a Slovak ally before an election.
Visual: A telephone cord tangled across three borders. -
Orbán halts gas deliveries to Ukraine (25 Mar)
Hungary will gradually stop gas shipments to Ukraine until Russian oil flows again through Druzhba.
Visual: A gas flame turned down to a blue dot. -
Police investigator alleges a covert plot against Tisza (25–26 Mar)
A police officer claims state security tried to sabotage the opposition's IT systems from within.
Visual: A computer cable with a second, hidden wire wound around it.
April
Top 3 of April
-
Tisza wins a two-thirds majority; Orbán's 16 years end (12 Apr)
Hungary's most consequential election since 1989 hands Péter Magyar's Tisza 141 of 199 seats.
Visual: A clock stopped after sixteen years, and a window thrown open. -
Artemis II carries humans farther than ever before (1–10 Apr)
The first crewed flight around the Moon since 1972 breaks Apollo 13's distance record and returns safely.
Visual: Earth as a small marble held at arm's length. -
Atlantic current system may be closer to collapse (15 Apr)
A new study projects the AMOC could weaken by about half this century, with direct consequences for Europe's climate.
Visual: A conveyor belt of water slowing to a stop.
Week 14 · 30 March – 5 April
World
-
Artemis II launches (1 Apr)
NASA sends four astronauts on the first crewed flight beyond low Earth orbit since 1972.
Visual: Four small figures rising inside a column of light. -
Trump addresses the nation on the Iran war (1 Apr)
The president speaks at a critical moment of the war, threatening Iran's infrastructure as talks fail.
Visual: A single microphone in front of a map on fire. -
Iran fires a new missile wave at Israel and the Gulf (2 Apr)
Tehran answers Trump's speech with fresh strikes as the Revolutionary Guards say Hormuz will never return to its pre-war state.
Visual: Arcs of light crossing a dark sea.
Hungary
-
Recording: Szijjártó promised Lavrov help with sanctions (31 Mar)
VSquare publishes audio in which the Hungarian foreign minister offers to help remove Russian names from EU sanctions lists.
Visual: A typed list with names being erased. -
Documentary exposes vote-buying and voter intimidation (2 Apr)
"The Price of the Vote" shows how poor communities, many of them Roma, are pressured to vote for Fidesz.
Visual: A ballot paper with a price tag tied to it. -
Budapest's Citadella reopens (5 Apr)
The renovated fortress on Gellért Hill opens to the public; Orbán calls the once "most hated building" a bastion of freedom.
Visual: A fortress wall opening onto a public terrace.
Week 15 · 6–12 April
World
-
US and Iran agree a two-week ceasefire (7 Apr)
Washington steps back from threatened escalation and accepts a Pakistan-brokered truce.
Visual: Two hourglasses set side by side. -
Israel's deadliest day of strikes on Lebanon (8 Apr)
A hundred airstrikes in ten minutes kill more than 300 people, a day after the US–Iran truce.
Visual: A hundred dots of light appearing at once on a dark map. -
Artemis II crew travels farther than any humans before (6 Apr)
Passing behind the Moon, the crew breaks Apollo 13's distance record before splashing down on 10 April.
Visual: Earth as a small marble held at arm's length.
Hungary
-
Tisza wins a constitutional majority; Orbán concedes (12 Apr)
Péter Magyar's Tisza takes 141 of 199 seats, ending 16 years of Fidesz rule.
Visual: A clock stopped after sixteen years, and a window thrown open. -
JD Vance campaigns for Orbán in Budapest (7 Apr)
The US vice president joins an Orbán rally five days before the vote, with Fidesz trailing in the polls.
Visual: A megaphone that has crossed an ocean, held to a quiet crowd. -
Leaked call: Orbán to Putin, "I am at your service" (7 Apr)
Bloomberg publishes a transcript in which Orbán likens himself to a mouse helping the Russian lion.
Visual: A small mouse pulling a thorn from a lion's paw.
Week 16 · 13–19 April
World
-
Atlantic current system may be closer to collapse (15 Apr)
A Science Advances study projects the AMOC could weaken by about half this century, with serious consequences for Europe's climate.
Visual: A conveyor belt of water slowing to a stop. -
US naval blockade of Iranian ports begins (13 Apr)
The US Navy starts stopping ships entering or leaving Iranian ports.
Visual: A ring of ships drawn like a closing fence. -
Radev's party wins an outright majority in Bulgaria (19 Apr)
The former president's Progressive Bulgaria breaks years of political deadlock with a clear win.
Visual: Eight ballot boxes collapsing into one.
Hungary
-
Magyar urges the president to quit and vows to overhaul state media (15 Apr)
The incoming prime minister sets out his first targets: President Sulyok and the public broadcaster.
Visual: A broom leaning against a palace door. -
The forint hits a four-year high (13 Apr)
Markets welcome the result, expecting frozen EU funds to flow and relations with Brussels to improve.
Visual: A coin rising like a balloon. -
Final count widens Tisza's majority (18 Apr)
Postal votes and the final tally strengthen Tisza's two-thirds, as talks on EU funds begin.
Visual: The last grains of sand settling on one side of a scale.
Week 17 · 20–26 April
World
-
Chernobyl, 40 years on (26 Apr)
Ukraine marks four decades since the nuclear disaster, in the middle of a war that has reached the site itself.
Visual: A silent reactor under a dome, with a clock frozen at 1:23. -
Trump extends the Iran ceasefire at Pakistan's request (21 Apr)
The truce is prolonged while the naval blockade stays in place.
Visual: An hourglass turned over once more. -
Jihadists and separatists overrun northern Mali (25 Apr)
JNIM and the Azawad Liberation Front take Kidal and parts of Gao and Mopti, threatening the junta in Bamako.
Visual: Sand dunes swallowing a map line by line.
Hungary
-
EU court strikes down Hungary's anti-LGBTQ law (21 Apr)
The Court of Justice rules the 2021 "child protection" law breaches EU law and core values.
Visual: A rainbow passing through the scales of justice. -
Magyar unveils his first ministers (20 Apr)
The prime minister-elect names seven ministers, including Anita Orbán for foreign affairs.
Visual: Seven empty chairs being pulled up to a table. -
Orbán steps back and vows to rebuild (25 Apr)
After the landslide defeat, Orbán says he will not take his seat in parliament and calls for Fidesz's renewal.
Visual: An empty seat in a full chamber.
Week 18 · 27 April – 3 May
World
-
UAE quits OPEC (28 Apr – 1 May)
With Hormuz still disrupted, the Emirates leave the oil cartel after 59 years.
Visual: A single barrel rolling out of a circle of barrels. -
European Parliament backs an EU-wide ban on conversion therapy (30 Apr)
MEPs call for banning practices that try to change sexual orientation or gender identity.
Visual: A figure stepping out of a mould that cannot hold them. -
Oceans near record heat as a strong El Niño looms (early May)
Copernicus reports the second-highest sea-surface temperatures on record for April, a warning sign for the summer ahead.
Visual: A blue globe slowly turning orange from the edges.
Hungary
-
Magyar and von der Leyen agree on unlocking EU funds (29 Apr)
After meeting the Commission president, Magyar says money frozen under Orbán will reach Hungary soon.
Visual: Two hands turning one key in a frozen lock. -
Press freedom index: Hungary near the bottom of the EU (30 Apr)
Reporters Without Borders ranks Hungary among the EU's worst for media freedom, a legacy the new government inherits.
Visual: A newspaper with most of its columns blank. -
Tisza's tax plan: relief for low earners, a levy on billionaires (late Apr)
The incoming government outlines lower taxes on small incomes and a new tax on the richest.
Visual: A seesaw tipping gently towards the many.
May
Top 3 of May
-
Péter Magyar takes office and ends rule by decree (9–14 May)
Hungary's new prime minister is sworn in and lifts the state of emergency in force since 2020.
Visual: A key passed between two hands, and a stack of decrees blowing away. -
WHO declares the Ebola outbreak a global emergency (16 May)
A rare Bundibugyo strain spreads in DR Congo and Uganda, with no approved vaccine.
Visual: A map with a single red thread spreading outwards. -
Europe's early, record-breaking heatwave (from 22 May)
Spring heat breaks records and kills thousands, the opening of Europe's hottest summer.
Visual: Spring flowers wilting under a summer sun.
Week 19 · 4–10 May
World
-
A three-day Victory Day truce in Ukraine (9–11 May)
Russia and Ukraine pause large-scale operations and plan a prisoner swap, though both report violations.
Visual: A white thread stretched across a trench for three days. -
Moscow's Victory Day parade without tanks (9 May)
Fearing Ukrainian drones, Russia holds a scaled-down Red Square parade with no heavy equipment.
Visual: Red Square, empty except for marching footprints. -
Explosion at a fireworks plant in China (4–5 May)
A blast at a factory in Liuyang, China's fireworks capital, kills dozens.
Visual: Celebration colours bursting at ground level.
Hungary
-
Péter Magyar is sworn in as prime minister (9 May)
Parliament elects Magyar, formally ending the Orbán era.
Visual: A key passed between two hands, one of them hesitating. -
Magyar meets Meloni in Rome (7 May)
The prime minister-elect's first foreign meeting covers migration and Hungary's port in Trieste.
Visual: A river reaching all the way to the sea. -
Budapest prepares a street party for the change of power (8–9 May)
Magyar invites Hungarians to celebrate the end of Orbán's rule on Kossuth Square on inauguration day.
Visual: Confetti falling on the steps of Parliament.
Week 20 · 11–17 May
World
-
WHO declares the Ebola outbreak a global emergency (16 May)
An outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo strain in DR Congo and Uganda is declared a public health emergency of international concern.
Visual: A map with a single red thread spreading outwards. -
Bulgaria's Dara wins Eurovision in Vienna (16 May)
Bulgaria wins the contest for the first time, with "Bangaranga".
Visual: A small country lit by one big spotlight. -
Israel kills the head of Hamas's military wing (15 May)
Izz al-Din al-Haddad, Hamas's leader in Gaza, dies in an Israeli strike.
Visual: A single star falling out of a constellation.
Hungary
-
Hungary ends its six-year state of emergency (14 May)
The new government ends the emergency rule by decree in place since the pandemic.
Visual: A stack of decrees blowing away in the wind. -
The Magyar government is sworn in (12 May)
Ministers take their oaths after parliamentary hearings; outgoing ministers hand over their offices.
Visual: Name plates being swapped on a row of doors. -
Hungary summons Russia's ambassador for the first time (13–14 May)
Foreign Minister Anita Orbán protests a Russian strike on Zakarpattia, home to Ukraine's Hungarian minority.
Visual: A teacup set down hard on a diplomatic table.
Week 21 · 18–24 May
World
-
Europe's early, record-breaking heatwave (from 22 May)
Spring temperatures break records across Europe and the heat turns deadly weeks before summer.
Visual: Spring flowers wilting under a summer sun. -
Coal mine gas explosion in Shanxi, China (22 May)
The Liushenyu mine blast kills around 90 miners, one of China's deadliest in years.
Visual: Black dust settling over a row of helmets. -
US indicts Raúl Castro (20 May)
A grand jury charges the former Cuban leader over the 1996 shootdown of Brothers to the Rescue planes.
Visual: Two small planes drawn in chalk on a courtroom wall.
Hungary
-
Magyar's first trip abroad: Warsaw before Vienna (19–21 May)
The new prime minister chooses Poland for his first visit, signalling a reset with the EU mainstream.
Visual: A compass needle swinging from east to west. -
Files on the Novák pardon scandal are released (19–22 May)
Documents show the 2023 clemency for an accomplice in a child-abuse case was rushed ahead of the papal visit.
Visual: A sealed envelope opened under a bright lamp. -
Deadly explosion at MOL's Tiszaújváros plant (21 May)
A blast at the petrochemical complex kills one worker and injures several others.
Visual: A column of smoke over a flat plain.
Week 22 · 25–31 May
World
-
Pope Leo XIV's first encyclical is about AI (25 May)
Magnifica Humanitas sets out the Church's view of artificial intelligence and human dignity.
Visual: A human hand and a machine hand almost touching, after the Sistine ceiling. -
A pancreatic cancer drug nearly doubles survival (31 May)
In a phase 3 trial, daraxonrasib extends median survival from 6.6 to 13.2 months in one of the deadliest cancers.
Visual: An hourglass with its sand doubling. -
Malta's Labour wins a record fourth term (30 May)
Robert Abela's party wins the snap election, the EU's smallest member voting for continuity.
Visual: A small island holding a large lighthouse.
Hungary
-
EU unlocks €16.4 billion for Hungary (29 May)
Brussels releases frozen funds after rapid anti-corruption reforms by the new government.
Visual: A frozen river beginning to thaw. -
Hungary stays in the International Criminal Court (27 May)
Parliament reverses the withdrawal Orbán began after hosting Netanyahu.
Visual: A chair pushed back into place at a round table. -
Népszava, Hungary's oldest daily, stops printing (28 May)
After its distribution contract is cancelled, the paper publishes its last print issue and moves online.
Visual: A printing press falling silent with one last page in it.
June
Top 3 of June
-
Twin earthquakes devastate western Venezuela (24 Jun)
Magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 quakes kill thousands, the year's deadliest natural disaster.
Visual: Two cracks meeting in the shape of a country. -
NOAA declares El Niño (11 Jun)
A potentially very strong El Niño begins, adding heat to an already record-warm planet.
Visual: A warm stain spreading across a blue ocean. -
Hungary lifts its veto on Ukraine's EU path (3 Jun)
A deal on minority rights reverses Hungary's 17-month block on Ukraine and Moldova starting EU accession talks.
Visual: A closed door with two keys turning at once.
Week 23 · 1–7 June
World
-
First base editing of human embryos (1 Jun)
Researchers report correcting single DNA letters in early embryos without breaking chromosomes; clinical use remains far off.
Visual: A single letter being corrected in a very long text. -
First human trial of an AI-designed universal vaccine (5 Jun)
A computer-designed coronavirus vaccine proves safe and produces an immune response in volunteers.
Visual: A protein drawn as a blueprint. -
Pashinyan's party wins Armenia's election (7 Jun)
Civil Contract wins again in a vote closely watched by Moscow.
Visual: A mountain road turning away from the north.
Hungary
-
Hungary lifts its veto on Ukraine's EU accession (3 Jun)
A deal on rights for Hungarians in Zakarpattia opens the first negotiating chapters for Ukraine and Moldova.
Visual: A closed door with two keys turning at once. -
Charges against Budapest's mayor over Pride are dropped (4 Jun)
Prosecutors abandon the case against Gergely Karácsony after the EU court ruling on the anti-LGBTQ law.
Visual: A gavel laid down beside a rainbow. -
Hungary stops new guest-worker permits (5–6 Jun)
A government decree halts new residence permits for guest workers, reversing an Orbán-era labour policy.
Visual: A turnstile locked halfway round.
Week 24 · 8–14 June
World
-
NOAA declares El Niño (11 Jun)
The Pacific warming pattern is under way, with a good chance of becoming one of the strongest since 1950.
Visual: A warm stain spreading across a blue ocean. -
The EU's migration and asylum pact takes effect (12 Jun)
Common rules for border screening, asylum and sharing responsibility apply across the EU.
Visual: A fence and an open hand drawn in the same line. -
SpaceX IPO makes Musk the first trillionaire (12 Jun)
The largest stock market debut ever pushes one man's wealth past one trillion dollars.
Visual: A one followed by twelve zeros, rising like a rocket.
Hungary
-
Orbán is re-elected Fidesz leader (13 Jun)
Despite the heaviest defeat of his career, Orbán keeps control of the party.
Visual: An old captain refusing to leave the bridge. -
Hungary submits its revised EU recovery plan (10 Jun)
An anti-corruption package and a new plan are sent to Brussels to unlock billions more.
Visual: A stack of documents bound with blue ribbon. -
Eight die in two crashes on the M1 motorway (12 Jun)
A minibus hits a stalled truck near Győr after an earlier collision on the same stretch.
Visual: Two sets of headlights frozen on a dark road.
Week 25 · 15–21 June
World
-
US and Iran sign the Islamabad Memorandum (15–17 Jun)
A 14-point agreement brokered by Pakistan is meant to end the war.
Visual: Fourteen candles lit on a negotiating table. -
G7 leaders meet in Evian (15–16 Jun)
The French Alps summit is dominated by the Iran deal, Ukraine and the world economy.
Visual: Seven chairs around a mountain lake. -
Colombia elects a right-wing president (21 Jun)
Abelardo de la Espriella narrowly wins the runoff against Iván Cepeda.
Visual: A pendulum swinging hard to one side.
Hungary
-
Hungary limits prime ministers to eight years (15 Jun)
A constitutional amendment caps the premiership, ruling out an Orbán comeback.
Visual: An hourglass bolted to a chair. -
Magyar's first EU summit approves the €10 billion recovery plan (19 Jun)
The Commission backs Hungary's revised plan as Magyar takes his seat among EU leaders.
Visual: A new chair added to a long table. -
Constitutional Court sidesteps President Sulyok's petition (19 Jun)
Seven judges refuse to hear his challenge, leaving the president exposed to removal.
Visual: A shield lowered by the hands meant to hold it.
Week 26 · 22–28 June
World
-
Twin earthquakes devastate western Venezuela (24 Jun)
Magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 quakes kill thousands; the toll keeps rising for weeks.
Visual: Two cracks meeting in the shape of a country. -
Keir Starmer resigns (22 Jun)
The UK prime minister announces he will step down once a successor is chosen.
Visual: A black door left slightly open. -
Japan evacuates 2.2 million ahead of Typhoon Mekkhala (26 Jun)
Record rain hits Kyushu and Taiwan as more than two million people are told to evacuate.
Visual: A spiral of cloud pressing on a chain of islands.
Hungary
-
Budapest Pride marches freely again (27 Jun)
Tens of thousands join the first Pride since Orbán lost power.
Visual: A rainbow crossing a bridge over the Danube. -
Magyar launches "Operation Cleansing Fire" (22 Jun)
A new constitutional amendment is announced to remove the president and other Orbán-era office holders.
Visual: A controlled fire clearing an overgrown field. -
Hungary sets a 2030 target for joining the euro (26 Jun)
Magyar says Hungary aims to meet the euro entry criteria by around 2030.
Visual: A forint coin slowly turning into a euro.
July
Top 3 of July
-
Hungary's parliament removes President Sulyok (14 Jul)
The new majority ousts the Orbán-era head of state, the boldest step in dismantling the old system.
Visual: An empty presidential chair facing a full chamber. -
Wildfires force 300,000 to flee in France and Spain (22–25 Jul)
Fires across southern Europe drive mass evacuations in a summer of record heat.
Visual: A coastline outlined in flame. -
The US–Iran peace deal collapses (8 Jul)
New US strikes end the Islamabad Memorandum after three weeks; the blockade returns and Hormuz closes again.
Visual: A signed paper torn along its fold.
Week 27 · 29 June – 5 July
World
-
Iran begins Khamenei's state funeral (3 Jul)
Millions are expected at days of mourning for the leader killed in February.
Visual: A sea of black flowing through a city. -
Russia's deadliest strike on Kyiv in months (1–3 Jul)
Some 570 missiles and drones are launched at Ukraine; at least 30 people die in Kyiv.
Visual: A city skyline lit by hundreds of falling sparks. -
1.2 million apply for Spain's migrant regularisation (2–3 Jul)
Twice as many people as expected seek legal status under Spain's amnesty.
Visual: A queue of people becoming a line of names on paper.
Hungary
-
Hungary sets its all-time heat record (30 Jun)
Szécsény reaches 42 °C, the highest temperature ever measured in Hungary; Budapest hits 41 °C.
Visual: A red line breaking out of the top of a thermometer. -
Chinese battery plant in Debrecen is shut down (29 Jun)
Authorities suspend Semcorp's separator factory over serious pollution concerns, a turn from Orbán's battery-industry policy.
Visual: A factory chimney with a cork pushed into it. -
The government moves to dissolve the state media holding MTVA (4 Jul)
The cabinet votes to break up the media empire that served as Fidesz's megaphone for over a decade.
Visual: A giant loudspeaker being taken apart screw by screw.
Week 28 · 6–12 July
World
-
NATO summit in Ankara (7–8 Jul)
Allies meet in Turkey amid war in the Middle East and pressure to share the defence burden.
Visual: A compass rose with one point pulling harder than the rest. -
Trump declares the Iran deal "over" (8 Jul)
New US strikes end the interim agreement signed in June.
Visual: A signed paper torn along its fold. -
Hamas dissolves its Gaza government (6 Jul)
Hamas hands civil administration to a UN-backed panel under the peace plan; Israel calls it a stunt.
Visual: A set of keys left on an empty desk in a ruined building.
Hungary
-
Hungary joins the European Public Prosecutor's Office (10 Jul)
Brussels approves Hungary's entry into the EU's anti-fraud prosecution body.
Visual: A magnifying glass held over a map of Hungary. -
Public television news goes dark (7 Jul)
M1 halts its news service and shows an apology while interim managers restructure the broadcaster.
Visual: A television showing only a single line of text. -
Magyar's first NATO summit: Russia named the aggressor (7–8 Jul)
Hungary's new prime minister calls Ukraine the victim and commits to higher defence spending.
Visual: A weathervane swinging to point west.
Week 29 · 13–19 July
World
-
Spain wins the World Cup (19 Jul)
Spain beats Argentina 1–0 after extra time to win its second title.
Visual: A single goal frozen at the 120th minute. -
Josh Kerr breaks the mile world record (18 Jul)
Kerr runs 3:42.66 in London, beating a record that stood for 27 years.
Visual: A stopwatch cracked by speed. -
Heatwave forces France to shut nuclear reactors (13–14 Jul)
River water becomes too warm to cool French plants, a preview of the crisis that later hits Paks.
Visual: A cooling tower exhaling into a white-hot sky.
Hungary
-
Parliament removes President Sulyok (14 Jul)
Using a constitutional amendment, the Tisza majority ousts the Orbán-era head of state.
Visual: An empty presidential chair facing a full chamber. -
Szijjártó quits politics for China's BYD (15–16 Jul)
The former foreign minister gives up his seat to join the carmaker, while Orbán watches the World Cup in the US.
Visual: A diplomat's briefcase swapped for a car key. -
Public media news restarts (13 Jul)
Hungarian public media begin a gradual return of news services under new management.
Visual: A blank screen flickering back to life.
Week 30 · 20–26 July
World
-
Wildfires force 300,000 to flee in France and Spain (22–25 Jul)
More than 300,000 people are ordered out as fires sweep southern France and Spain.
Visual: A coastline outlined in flame. -
US imposes "forced labour" tariffs, including 10% on the EU (24 Jul)
Washington applies new tariffs to imports from some 60 economies, citing forced labour in supply chains.
Visual: A price tag tied to a chain. -
Andy Burnham becomes UK prime minister (20 Jul)
The former Manchester mayor succeeds Keir Starmer, Britain's seventh prime minister in ten years.
Visual: Seven door knockers on one black door.
Hungary
-
Prosecutors raid Fidesz's data servers (21 Jul)
Investigators search offices housing Fidesz servers in a probe into about 17 billion forints of cultural fund grants.
Visual: Server lights blinking behind police tape. -
Orbán's chief prosecutor resigns (22 Jul)
Gábor Bálint Nagy steps down under pressure, opening the way for investigations into the old government.
Visual: A judge's chair turned to face the wall. -
A €10 billion plan to rebuild the railways (23 Jul)
The government unveils a ten-year programme of new trains, faster lines and suburban upgrades.
Visual: Rails drawn as rising lines on a growth chart.
Week 31 · 27 July – 2 August
World
-
Deadly mass crossing into Ceuta (30 Jul)
Tens of thousands breach the border from Morocco; dozens die and Spain deploys the army.
Visual: A fence bending under the weight of the sea. -
Magnitude 6.8 earthquake in Kumamoto, Japan (28 Jul)
A shallow quake strikes southern Japan, killing dozens.
Visual: A paper lantern swaying in a shaking room. -
Saudi Arabia leads a 14-nation Red Sea coalition (30–31 Jul)
A new maritime alliance forms to secure shipping after the Houthis declare a blockade at Bab el-Mandeb.
Visual: Fourteen boats forming a chain across a narrow strait.
Hungary
-
Paks nuclear plant shuts down for the first time (2 Aug)
Record-low Danube levels leave no cooling water; the plant that supplies 40% of Hungary's power goes offline.
Visual: Four cooling towers standing silent beside a dry riverbed. -
Emergency drought alert across three-quarters of Hungary (30 Jul)
66 of 84 water districts pass drought thresholds; Lake Velence shrinks to pools.
Visual: A map of Hungary drawn in cracked earth. -
New Asset Recovery Office starts work (late Jul)
A new authority with investigative powers begins tracing public assets transferred under the old government.
Visual: A magnet pulling coins back across a table.
August
Top 3 of August
-
The Danube runs dry and Paks goes offline (2–3 Aug)
Record drought pushes Hungary, Romania and Serbia to the edge of an energy emergency, the clearest sign of the climate crisis in Hungary this year.
Visual: The Danube as a thin silver thread between cracked banks. -
Total solar eclipse over Iceland and Spain (12 Aug)
The first total eclipse visible from mainland Europe in decades draws millions of watchers.
Visual: A black disc with a white crown over a crowd of upturned faces. -
Catastrophic floods in Nepal and Tibet (from 26 Aug)
Himalayan floods kill more than a thousand people, among them Hungarian pilgrims reported missing.
Visual: A mountain valley filled to the brim like a bowl.
Week 32 · 3–9 August
World
-
Hiroshima marks 81 years (6 Aug)
With no arms-control treaty left between the US and Russia, the mayor condemns the renewed pursuit of nuclear weapons.
Visual: A paper crane folded from a treaty. -
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan sign a joint defence pact (7 Aug)
The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement creates a new military bloc across the Muslim world.
Visual: Three shields overlapping into one. -
US Senate backs 100% tariffs on buyers of Russian oil (7–8 Aug)
A sweeping sanctions bill targets Russia's energy customers, a threat that also reaches Hungary.
Visual: An oil drop magnified until it fills the frame.
Hungary
-
Record-low Danube pushes Hungary towards an energy emergency (3 Aug)
Paks runs at a fraction of its output, trams and metros slow down and landmarks go dark to save power.
Visual: Parliament's dome unlit on a hot night. -
Low water reveals the Danube's hidden past (5 Aug)
Aerial footage shows sandbanks across Budapest; wartime bridge remains and a WWII motorcycle surface from the riverbed.
Visual: A river peeled back to show bones and iron. -
Tisza nominates András Baka for president (early Aug)
The former Supreme Court president, removed by Orbán in 2012, is put forward to replace Sulyok.
Visual: A name returned to the place it was erased from.
Week 33 · 10–16 August
World
-
Total solar eclipse over Iceland and Spain (12 Aug)
The first total eclipse visible from mainland Europe in decades draws millions of watchers.
Visual: A black disc with a white crown over a crowd of upturned faces. -
Assad sentenced to death in absentia (11 Aug)
A Damascus court convicts the former Syrian president of crimes against humanity.
Visual: A portrait turned to face the wall. -
Magnitude 7.4 earthquake in western Colombia (10 Aug)
The quake kills more than 300 people, the second major Latin American earthquake of the summer.
Visual: A mountain ridge shaken loose like a rug.
Hungary
-
András Baka elected Hungary's president (11 Aug)
Parliament elects the former Supreme Court president whom Orbán had removed in 2012.
Visual: A judge's robe returning to an empty hook. -
Twelve killed as a Polish tourist bus crashes on the M3 (16 Aug)
The bus veers off the motorway, in Hungary's deadliest road accident in years.
Visual: A bus window scattered with summer postcards. -
Record July budget surplus (10 Aug)
Hungary posts its largest monthly surplus since records began, as the new government cuts the deficit.
Visual: A leaking bucket suddenly holding water.
Week 34 · 17–23 August
World
-
Trump announces an "Economic D-Day" against Iran (20 Aug)
The US opens an economic front in the war and threatens countries that keep trading with Iran.
Visual: Coins lined up like landing craft on a beach. -
Gold mine collapse in the Central African Republic (18–19 Aug)
A landslide at an artisanal mine kills around 100 people.
Visual: A gold ring pressed into red earth. -
Sword attack at a school in Sweden (21 Aug)
An 18-year-old kills one person and injures others at a school in Fagersta.
Visual: An empty school corridor with one chair overturned.
Hungary
-
St Stephen's Day under the new government (20 Aug)
A shorter fireworks show and a drone display mark the first national day after the change of power.
Visual: Drones forming a crown above the Danube. -
Magyar's first 100 days (17 Aug)
The government claims over 100 commitments completed; Fidesz says key promises remain unmet.
Visual: A hundred ticks on a wall, some already fading. -
"Gold convoy" case against Ukrainian couriers closed (Aug)
Investigators find the seized cash and gold had a documented interbank source, undoing the March accusations.
Visual: An armoured van's doors closing quietly.
Week 35 · 24–30 August
World
-
Catastrophic floods in Nepal and Tibet (from 26 Aug)
Himalayan floods kill hundreds within days, with thousands missing; the toll later rises above a thousand.
Visual: A mountain valley filled to the brim like a bowl. -
King Harald V of Norway dies (28 Aug)
Europe's oldest monarch dies at 89 after 35 years on the throne; his son becomes King Haakon VIII.
Visual: A crown passing through northern light. -
NASA launches the Roman Space Telescope (30 Aug)
The wide-field observatory sets out to map dark energy and find thousands of exoplanets.
Visual: A wide eye opening onto a field of galaxies.
Hungary
-
Hungary officially names Russia a threat (26 Aug)
Guidelines for the UN delegation condemn Russia's aggression, a complete reversal of Orbán-era policy.
Visual: A map with a red line redrawn on the other side. -
A Gripen fighter crashes near Szolnok (24 Aug)
The pilot steers the jet clear and ejects, and is released from hospital within days.
Visual: A parachute opening above a field, a plume of smoke beyond. -
Fidesz weighs dissolution (27 Aug)
With Tisza near 70% in the polls, insiders discuss rebranding without Orbán or closing the party.
Visual: An orange flag folded and laid in a drawer.
Week 36 · 31 August – 6 September
World
-
Germany blames Russia for a drone attack plot at Leipzig airport (2 Sep)
Berlin attributes an explosives-laden drone found at the airport to Russia and the EU calls it state-sponsored terrorism.
Visual: A toy-sized drone casting a very large shadow on a runway. -
OpenAI releases GPT-6 (3–4 Sep)
The next generation of the model behind ChatGPT arrives with new cybersecurity guardrails.
Visual: A sixth layer added to a glowing stack. -
A pig kidney keeps a man alive for a record 271 days (3 Sep)
The gene-edited organ served as a bridge until the patient received a human kidney, a milestone for xenotransplantation.
Visual: A bridge made of two different kinds of stone.
Hungary
-
August is Hungary's hottest month on record (3 Sep)
August averages 24.9 °C, 3.7 degrees above normal; drought hits harvests and forces most of Paks offline.
Visual: A field of sunflowers bowing to the ground. -
Hungary links Ukraine's EU talks to minority rights (1–3 Sep)
Budapest says it is still waiting for Kyiv to implement the June deal before more negotiating clusters open.
Visual: A bridge built halfway from each bank. -
Migration crisis status extended to year-end (4 Sep)
Magyar keeps the Orbán-era border regime in place, citing the Ceuta crossings as a warning to Europe.
Visual: A fence that stays standing while everything around it changes.
September
Top 3 of September
-
Hungary expels ten Russian diplomats (8 Sep)
The clearest break yet with Moscow; Russia retaliates in early October.
Visual: Ten coats left hanging in an embassy hallway. -
High Seas Treaty reaches 100 parties (23–29 Sep)
Protection for two-thirds of the world's ocean gathers decisive support ahead of its first conference.
Visual: One hundred hands holding up the surface of the sea. -
Germany blames Russia for a drone attack plot at Leipzig airport (2 Sep)
Russia's hybrid war on Europe reaches a civilian airport; the EU calls it state-sponsored terrorism.
Visual: A toy-sized drone casting a very large shadow on a runway.
Week 37 · 7–13 September
World
-
OpenAI claims an AI proof of the Navier–Stokes problem (8 Sep)
The company says its model solved a Millennium Prize problem in days; mathematicians dispute credit and verification is pending.
Visual: Turbulent water written as an equation. -
Sweden's centre-left narrowly wins the election (13 Sep)
The opposition takes a one-seat lead; Prime Minister Kristersson later concedes.
Visual: A balance tipped by a single feather. -
Albania's "Flamingo Revolution" turns violent on its 100th night (8 Sep)
Protests against a Kushner-linked luxury resort on the coast clash with police outside parliament.
Visual: Pink flamingos standing in a line facing riot shields.
Hungary
-
Hungary expels ten Russian diplomats (8 Sep)
The clearest break yet with the Orbán-era closeness to Moscow.
Visual: Ten coats left hanging in an embassy hallway. -
The Danube in Budapest falls to a record low (9 Sep)
The gauge reads about one centimetre, the lowest since measurements began.
Visual: A measuring pole standing in almost no water. -
Orbán declares "national resistance" (12–13 Sep)
At Kötcse, Orbán says Fidesz's patience is over, while Magyar starts a national tour calling for reconciliation.
Visual: Two roads leaving the same village in opposite directions.
Week 38 · 14–20 September
World
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United Russia wins a record Duma supermajority (18–20 Sep)
Putin's party takes 355 seats in a vote without real competition.
Visual: A ballot box with only one slot. -
A new wild cat species is identified in Bolivia (17–18 Sep)
Genetic study confirms Leopardus tilcayo, the first new living cat species described in over a century.
Visual: A small spotted cat stepping out of a cloud forest. -
Norway creates its largest marine protected area (18 Sep)
About 1,850 km² of the Andfjorden fjord system come under protection.
Visual: A whale's tail rising inside a drawn boundary.
Hungary
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Magyar announces a new constitution and electoral law (14 Sep)
The prime minister says a new Fundamental Law will be put to a referendum before a new electoral law follows.
Visual: A blank page laid over an old charter. -
Billionaire Jellinek arrested in the Volánbusz case (17 Sep)
A court orders the detention of the Indotek CEO and a former state-asset chief over overpriced bus purchases.
Visual: Six hundred toy buses lined up on a scale. -
Hungary plans to stop buying Russian gas by October 2027 (18 Sep)
Energy minister Kapitány says Hungary can meet its needs from other sources by the EU deadline.
Visual: A gas pipe ending in a garden of wind turbines.
Week 39 · 21–27 September
World
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UN General Assembly opens, Guterres gives his last address (22 Sep)
Around 130 leaders speak as the race to choose the next Secretary-General begins.
Visual: A circle of empty chairs around one microphone. -
High Seas Treaty reaches 100 parties (23–29 Sep)
The agreement covering about two-thirds of the world's ocean gathers 100 ratifications ahead of its first conference.
Visual: One hundred hands holding up the surface of the sea. -
Xi Jinping visits Trump at the White House (24 Sep)
The two leaders extend their trade truce, but disputes over Taiwan, oil and technology remain.
Visual: Two hands shaking across a table split by a crack.
Hungary
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Prosecutors seek immunity waivers for PM Magyar and two Orbán-era ministers (22 Sep)
Former ministers Szeszták and Hankó face corruption probes; Magyar faces a 2024 phone-snatching case.
Visual: Three masks hanging on hooks, waiting to be removed. -
Police raid the think tank behind CPAC Hungary (23 Sep)
Officers search the Center for Fundamental Rights over suspected misuse of public money.
Visual: A conference banner rolled up inside an evidence bag. -
EU releases cohesion funds and restores Erasmus+ for Hungary (23 Sep)
The Commission frees €4.2 billion and reopens Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe to Hungarian students and researchers.
Visual: A university gate reopening onto a map of Europe.
Week 40 · 28 September – 4 October
World
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Latvia votes; Kulbergs' United List leads (3 Oct)
The governing list takes a clear lead in the Saeima election, ahead of Latvia First (preliminary count).
Visual: A Baltic shoreline drawn in ballot papers. -
Brazil heads to a Lula–Bolsonaro runoff (4 Oct)
Neither Lula nor Flávio Bolsonaro wins outright, setting up a polarised second round.
Visual: A country split by one bright line into two equal colours. -
US completes its withdrawal from Iraq (30 Sep)
The last American troops leave, ending a 12-year mission against the Islamic State.
Visual: Footprints in sand leading to the edge of the frame.
Hungary
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Immunity lifted; two Orbán-era ministers detained (28–30 Sep)
Parliament lifts the immunity of Magyar, Szeszták and Hankó; both former ministers are taken into custody.
Visual: Three masks removed and laid side by side. -
Russia expels Hungarian diplomats in retaliation (early Oct)
Moscow answers September's expulsions and warns that economic ties could suffer.
Visual: A mirror reflecting a door slammed in return. -
OTP, Hungary's largest bank, weighs leaving Russia (28 Sep)
The bank that stayed in Russia through four years of war considers a sale as Budapest's line hardens.
Visual: A bank vault door swinging shut from the inside.