Tattoos could be turned on and off with light

Written and edited by the WorldPing NewsdeskPublished Updated Original reporting: New Scientist
Tattoos could be turned on and off with lightWorldPing
Image via New Scientist.

What happened

A new type of ink could overcome one of the main downsides of tattoos: the inability to make them invisible…

Key facts

  • Reported by New Scientist and published Fri, 09 Oct 2026 15:00:00 UTC.

Why it matters

Research findings and mission results set the evidence base that policy, funding and later discoveries build on.

What to watch next

  • Peer review status and replication of the findings
  • Mission milestones and next scheduled attempt
  • Funding or policy decisions that follow

Coverage timeline

When each newsroom published on this story, oldest first — all times UTC.

  1. Broken bones in ancient homes shed new light on Viking violence

  2. Light reads electron spins inside porous crystals, opening path to quantum chemical sensors

  3. Tattoos could be turned on and off with light

  4. Scientists have identified a 'protein signature' in blood that could predict healthy aging

  5. Cool chemistry trick allows new tattoos to 'turn on and off'

  6. Light-responsive inks could make tattoos visible on demand, but safety remains unproven

  7. Tiny marine microbe sheds new light on how little genetic machinery a cell needs to survive

Sources

The original report was published by New Scientist. WorldPing does not claim that reporting — this page summarises and contextualises it.

Read the full report at New Scientist

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