Earth`s Cryosphere, 2019, Vol. XXIII, № 3, p. 58-66
HALF A CENTURY IN THE NORTH:
THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE LABORATORY OF GEOECOLOGY OF THE NORTH, FACULTY OF GEOGRAPHY, LOMONOSOV MOSCOW STATE UNIVERSITY
F.A. Romanenko
Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Geography,
1, Leninskie Gory, Moscow, 119991, Russia; faromanenko@mail.ru
The article is devoted to the history of the laboratory of geoecology of the North (LGN) of the Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University, established in 1969 as a research laboratory for development of northern territories. The prerequisites for establishment of the laboratory by the former head of the Glavsevmorput (Chief Directorate of the Northern Sea Route), Engineer Rear-Admiral Vasily Fedotovich Burkhanov, and the history of research conducted by the laboratory scientists are described. The idea promoted by V.F. Burkhanov was to develop a consistent integrated strategy for development of the North based on consideration of both anthropogenic and natural factors. It is shown that this basic principle laid down by V.F. Burkhanov has been preserved in the modern activities of the laboratory, which has been headed by Professor V.I. Solomatin for forty years. During half a century of the laboratory’s existence, well-known researchers, who made a significant contribution to the study of the northern territories, worked in the laboratory: S.A. Rakita, I.D. Danilov, N.F. Grigoriev, N.G. Patyk-Kara, B.A. Popov, L.A. Zhigarev, V.A. Sovershaev, V.Y. Biryukov, K.S. Voskresensky, etc. With the advent of a new generation of young researchers, the laboratory has received a new impetus for growth: the researchers are using innovative methods of research and are viewing the future with confidence.
Geoecology of the North, history of geography, permafrost science, geomorphology, socioeconomic geography