Gilbert Ligar

A Rare Coco De Mer Palm At The Eden Project (EP) Has Grown The UK’s Largest Mature Leaf, ~4m Long. Grown From A 2003 Seychelles Seed, It’s The First Of Its Kind To Mature In The UK. The Leaf May Reach 8–10m & Aids Seed Germination. EP Also Saw The UK’s First Flowering Of The Baobab, The Famed “Tree Of Life” Native To Madagascar And Africa.

…

Twin Brothers Ian & Stuart Paton, 64, From Hampshire, UK, Set Two Guinness World Records With A 1,278kg Pumpkin Measuring 6.4m+ In Circumference, Making It The World’s Heaviest & Largest Pumpkin. Grown Locally & Watered With 130 Gallons Daily, It Surpassed Travis Gienger’s 1,247kg, 6.1m Record, Swelling From Golf Ball To Giant In 130 Days.

…

Dame Sarah Mullally, 63, Becomes The First-Ever Woman Archbishop Of Canterbury In 1,400 Years, Leading 85M Anglicans Worldwide. A Former UK‘s Youngest Chief Nurse At 37 & Bishop Of London, She Replaces Justin Welby Amid Abuse Scandal Fallout. Her Appointment Sparks Debate On Women’s Roles In The Church & Challenges On LGBTQ Inclusion & Racism.

NASA’s Artemis II Launches In Feb 2026. 4 Astronauts, Led By Reid Wiseman, Will Orbit The Moon 10 Days In Integrity (No Landing; Only Testing Systems & Crew). This First Crewed Mission In 50 Yrs Includes Christina Koch (First Woman), Victor Glover (First Black Astronaut), & Jeremy Hansen (First Non-American), Advancing Goals For Moon Bases/Mars.

UK Scientists, In A First, Found A Strong Link Between Thumb Length & Brain Size Across 94 Living & Fossil Primate Species. Longer Thumbs, Important For Gripping & Handling Objects, Are Tied To A Larger Neocortex, Which Controls Thinking & Senses. This Link Holds Without Humans, Showing Hands & Brains Co-Evolved Over Millions Of Years.

On 9/19/25, Russian Farmer Alexander Chusov Set A New National Heaviest Pumpkin Record With A 969kg Entry At Russia’s Giant Veggie Contest, Surpassing His Previous Mark. A 144kg Watermelon & 73kg Courgette Also Won. Winners Will Be Displayed At Moscow’s Apothecary Garden. The World’s Heaviest Pumpkin Is 1,247kg, Grown By Travis Gienger In California.

On 9/3/25, Ukrainian Immigrant Alex Babich, 47, Set A Guinness World Record For The Tallest Sunflower. At 35ft 9in, The Indiana-Grown Sunflower, Named “Clover” By His Son, Beats The Previous Record In Germany By 5ft 8in. Inspired By His Legacy & Ukraine’s National Flower, This Symbol Of Peace Will Be Featured In The 2025 Documentary, Bloom.

Japan, With The World’s Longest Life Expectancy, Has Set A World Record For The 55th Year, As Nearly 100K Citizens Are Now Aged 100+. As Of 9/2025, The Count Was 99,763 With 88% Women. Shigeko Kagawa (F, 114) & Kiyotaka Mizuno (M, 111) Are The Oldest. Diet, Low Obesity, & Active Living Help, Though Critics Say Data Errors May Inflate Stats.

…

Hunter-Gatherers In Asia Smoke-Dried Their Dead 12–14Kyrs Ago, Marking The Oldest Known Evidence Of Intentional Mummification, Predating Chile (~5050 BC) & Egypt (~3000 BC). 2017–2025 Study Of 54 Crouched Burials From 11 Sites Showed, Via Spectroscopy, Heat/Smoke Preservation, Suggesting Ritual Care Like Modern Papua New Guinea Practices.

…

Ethiopia Inaugurated The $5B Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) On 9/9/25 In Guba (Blue Nile). Funded 91% By The Central Bank & 9% By Citizens, GERD Generates 5,150 MW, Making It Africa’s Largest Dam. Egypt Fears GERD Could Reduce Nile Flow During Droughts, Threatening Its Water Supply & Dam. In 2022, ~55% Of Ethiopians Had Electricity.