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From the unveiling of our first ever glimpse at a black hole to the unfortunate fellow who injected semen into his own arm, 2019 has truly been a wild ride for humanity.
But beneath the headlines were some stories that, for better or worse, you just couldn't scroll past.
Without further ado, here's the list of most-read ABC News stories of 2019 based on your clicks.
Defying years of opinion polls and public expectation, Scott Morrison led the Coalition to victory in May in what was a crushing defeat for the Labor Party and Bill Shorten, who stepped down as leader.
Fifty-one people were killed by an Australian man in two armed attacks on Christchurch mosques in March, in what Jacinda Ardern labelled "one of New Zealand's darkest days".
ABC News readers closely followed catastrophic fire conditions that gripped NSW, including the efforts of emergency services after one particularly challenging day in November that saw 300 new fires sparked across the state.
In April, a catastrophic fire engulfed Notre Dame cathedral in Paris — one of the greatest architectural treasures of the Western world — gutting and destroying the landmark's spire and leaving French citizens stunned.
Easter Sunday bomb blasts at Sri Lankan churches and luxury hotels killed at least 200 people and injured more than 450, following a lull in significant attacks since the end of the civil war 10 years ago.
It was the saga that sparked the 'Egg Boy' phenomenon — a 17-year-old boy smashed an egg on Fraser Anning's head as he spoke at a political meeting in Melbourne in March, prompting the controversial Queensland senator to fight back.
Do you ever feel like you earn less than most other people? Most people struggle to accurately estimate how their income compares to other Australians, but you gave it a good crack in May.
The murder of a woman in August was linked to a stabbing attack in central Sydney that left another woman in hospital — and was only stopped after the alleged offender was "whacked" with a chair.
Australia's most senior Catholic cleric, Cardinal George Pell, was convicted in February of sexually abusing two choirboys while he was archbishop of Melbourne.
Four men were killed and a woman was injured when a gunman — who was recently released on parole and reportedly armed with a pump-action shotgun — went on a rampage across Darwin in June.
In the small hours of a Wednesday in an outback town, a teenager struggled to sleep. The timeline of what happened next was a harrowing account of failure in Australia's regional hospitals, where resources are stretched and staff are under constant pressure.
Exclusive school finance figures, published in August, revealed four elite private schools spent more on new facilities than the poorest 1,800 schools combined. This is Australia's great education divide.
Rachel thought her first real relationship was normal until, as she told The Signal in October, her boyfriend faked his own death while owing her money.
British stand-up comedian Ian Cognito died onstage during a gig in April after joking about dying in front of the audience, telling the crowd: "Imagine if I died in front of you lot here".
Sydney detectives spoke to murdered dentist Preethi Reddy's former boyfriend Harsh Narde about her disappearance in March before he was killed in a car crash believed to have been a deliberate act.
Gangs and drugs get the headlines, but a different crime takes up far more police time than any other: family violence. We spent a Sunday night with Jackie and David, two cops on the frontline of this hidden emergency.
At the start of the year, author Madonna King set out to find the secret to strong relationships between girls and their dads, and discovered that three things were raised repeatedly and backed by experts.
There was a Whole New World of interest in Ash Barty's Wimbledon press conferences in July as the straight-faced world number one dropped Disney references into her answers.
Two young girls were found dead in October at a home in Madeley, in Perth's northern suburbs. Their mother was arrested in connection with the deaths.
After a weeks-long manhunt Canadian police discovered the bodies of Kam McLeod, 19, and Bryer Schmegelsky, 18, in August. The pair were suspected of murdering three people, including Sydney man Lucas Fowler.
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