Beyond the tunnel of light: New study reveals what people really see when near death

For generations, the tunnel of light has been one of the most haunting images associated with coming close to death: a mysterious passageway, a brilliant glow in the distance and the feeling of moving towards something beyond the world we know.

Perhaps you know someone who has described seeing a bright light, travelling through a tunnel or experiencing something extraordinary after coming close to death. For those who have lost a loved one, or wondered what happens when life comes to an end, such accounts can offer a small glimmer of reassurance in the face of one of life’s greatest unknowns.

But what if the experience is not quite what we have been led to believe? New research has uncovered four recurring visual patterns reported by people who have experienced near-death episodes, suggesting there may be more common ground between these extraordinary experiences than previously thought.

While science cannot yet explain what happens at the point of death, the findings offer a fascinating glimpse into what people remember seeing when they came close to it.

Researchers asked 50 people to draw what they saw

The study, published on October 15, 2026, in the scientific journal Frontiers in Psychology, involved researchers from the University of Haifa in Israel and other international institutions.

Rather than relying entirely on verbal descriptions, the team took a different approach: they asked 50 volunteers who reported having experienced near-death episodes to recreate their memories through drawings.

Participants used shapes, symbols and arrows to illustrate what they remembered seeing, where they felt they were positioned and how they believed they were moving through the experience.

In total, the researchers collected 112 visual sequences. Of these, 108 could be classified into four recurring categories.

The researchers also examined the colours associated with each shape, looking for similarities between the accounts.

The four visual patterns people reported seeing

The findings revealed four distinct types of visual environments, some of which were quite different from the traditional image of a tunnel leading towards a bright light.

1. Cone-shaped spaces

The first pattern involved cone-like environments, often described as dark or resembling a night sky.

In fact, 78.6 per cent of these experiences were described without distinct colours, with participants recalling black, grey or different shades of darkness.

Some accounts also included a sensation of travelling through the space, with one participant describing moving through a tunnel that gradually became lighter.

2. Curved arches

The second category involved curved structures resembling sections of circles or ellipses.

These were particularly associated with colour, with 87.1 per cent of the reported experiences containing distinct shades. Pink, purple and green were among the colours described.

3. Flat horizons

A third group recalled relatively flat, horizontal visual environments.

These experiences were more varied in appearance, with 65 per cent involving colour and the remainder described in achromatic terms.

4. Enclosing oval shapes

The final category involved ellipsoidal structures that appeared to surround the person completely.

Some participants described these spaces as containing an intense white light. Colour was reported in 58.6 per cent of these experiences.

Taken together, the findings suggest that the visual environments people associate with near-death experiences can differ considerably, even when certain geometric features appear repeatedly.

Not everyone describes the same journey

The researchers also explored how these experiences unfolded over time.

Some participants described an initial sensation of separating from their physical bodies, followed by what they considered the central near-death experience. In certain cases, this was followed by a feeling of returning to their bodies.

However, this was not a universal sequence.

Of the 50 participants, 18 reported a near-death experience without an out-of-body component. Others described feeling detached from their physical bodies, while some recalled a sensation of reconnecting with them.

This suggests that even the order and nature of events can vary considerably between individuals.

Could science explain the tunnel of light?

While the research offers fascinating insights, it does not establish what happens after death or prove that consciousness continues beyond the body.

The scientists were also keen to highlight some important limitations. Participants were recalling experiences that had happened an average of 20 years earlier, meaning memories may have changed over time.

Furthermore, the medical circumstances surrounding the experiences were not independently verified, and the study did not include a control group for comparison.

The researchers suggested that some of the visual patterns might resemble known visual phenomena, but further investigation is needed to understand their origins.

For anyone who has heard a loved one describe an extraordinary experience at the edge of life, the findings may nevertheless offer an intriguing point of connection.

The familiar tunnel of light may not be the universal experience many people imagine, but the discovery of recurring patterns raises another fascinating question: why do people from different backgrounds sometimes remember such strikingly similar visual worlds when they come close to death?