The wacky world of optical illusions is also a wonderful one. Lucky for us it's always expanding with brilliant new mind-bogglers being made every day. And today's find is no exception, with its magical design that looks more like a video clip than a still image.
That's right, this colourful baffler (see below) may look like an animation but it's actually just an optical illusion. The design was posted online by an illusion artist and has been confusing Twitter users ever since. If you're loving this optical illusion and would like to sink your teeth into some more, then check out our roundup of the best optical illusions.
This apparent bulge appears to move. pic.twitter.com/cPehhEpLE3February 22, 2022
The illusion was created by artist Akiyoshi Kitaoka, who also made the famous rotating snakes illusion we saw perplexing a cat. The design uses the 'anomalous motion phenomenon' to make it look as though the picture is moving. According to NPR, "The illusion has something to do with the visual processing that occurs when the image first hits the retina at a particular location, sending signals to the brain's visual cortex, and also with the progression of colours".
It looks as though users over on Twitter are feeling just as baffled as we are. One user responded to the illusion, "Sorcery!" and another asked, "Wait, is this an image?". One Twitter user even said they had to screenshot the design to make sure it wasn't a video.
This isn't the first illusion we've seen that magically moves on its own, back in January we saw two mystical cubes appear to move. If you'd like to have a go at designing your own brain-baffler, then check out our guide on how to download Photoshop and get creating.
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