10 March 2021

Nikolay Grigoriev’s Booklet on Igarka Permafrost Translated into English

The booklet “Cryo-Hydrogeological Features of the Igarka Region” published in Yakutsk in 1992 by N.F. Grigoriev, a prominent Soviet & Russian permafrost researcher, has been translated into English by Dr. Nikita Tananaev, who also provides some updated information and new photographs from his several years of research work in Igarka. This booklet is a unique description of permafrost distribution and groundwater occurrence in the Northern Yenisey region, surrounding the city of Igarka, a former capital of the Soviet Arctic development.

Climate change affects the regional environment, and international research teams aim at studying, explaining and forecasting expected changes in the Arctic landscapes. In this scope, this booklet can guide the research by providing both historical data and current state descriptions to future researchers working in the Northern Yenisey region, a fragile permafrost environment highly susceptible to the ongoing climate warming.

The booklet is available for reading and downloading at:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ERTPvO6Bx0FpX_nzx_ouKFX_SO0_avKI/view?usp=sharing

Dr. Nikolay Grigoriev (1911–2005)

January 11, 2021

A New Book: The Subsurface Temperature Field and Permafrost in the Vilyui Basin

In December 2020, a 123-paged monograph “The Subsurface Temperature Field and Permafrost in the Vilyui Basin” by M.N. Zhelezniak and V.P. Semenov was published in Novosibirsk by the RAS Siberian Branch Press (in Russian). It presents an overall summary of geothermal research conducted in the region by MPI since the 1950s. The book describes the environmental setting and ground temperature controls, as well as the history, methods and major findings of previous work. The thermal regime of disequilibrium permafrost is characterized. Permafrost thicknesses are estimated for mineral deposits, hydrocarbon fields and structural units within the Vilyui Basin. Bulk determinations of rock thermal and physical properties are presented. Using the thermophysical properties and thermal measurements, geothermal heat flow distribution in the Vilyui Basin is estimated.

With enormous gratitude, the authors dedicate this book to their colleagues who began pioneering geothermal investigations in the region in the mid-20th century: V.N. Devyatkin, V.T. Balobaev, A.I. Levchenko, B.V. Volodko, S.V. Danilevsky, V.G. Tungusov, D.V. Rybnikov, and V.G. Rusakov.

27 February 2021

Fifth Gavrilova Readings Held at MPI

On 25 February 2021, the Fifth Gavrilova Readings were held by MPI. Over 40 participants met in a hybrid online/offline format to discuss climate change effects on natural and human-affected geosystems in permafrost regions. The morning round-table session honoured the late Prof., Dr. Petr P. Gavrilyev who would have had his 85th birthday recently. His outstanding contributions to environmental studies of northern agricultural lands were highlighted by the keynote speaker, Dr. Alexander Fedorov. This was followed by discussion of current issues and gaps in addressing climate change effects on permafrost terrain. The afternoon session commemorated the research and legacy of Prof., Dr. Maria Gavrilova, an internationally recognized scientist for studies on climate – permafrost relationships. Discussions centered around the keynote by Kyunney Kirillina, North-Eastern Federal University, concerning regional climate modeling using different GCMs.

December 4, 2020

MPI DISSERTATION COUNCIL MEETINGS

The Dissertation Council D003.025.01 at MPI authorized by the Russian Ministry of Higher Education and Science's Attestation Committee to award degrees in geography, geology & mineralogy, and engineering in the fields of engineering geology, geocryology, and geotechnical engineering held its hybrid online/offline meetings on November 24-25 and December 1-2, 2020 for public defense of doctoral dissertations. Andrey Zhang and Anatoly Kirillin from MPI successfully defended their Kandidat Nauk (equivalent to Ph.D.) dissertations titled respectively "Thermal Stabilization of the Railway Embankment and Foundation by Sideslope Insulation" and "The Subsurface Temperature Field and Permafrost in the Elkon Horst". A Ph.D. study, “Performance Assessment of Crawlspace with a Regulated Regime for Pile-Founded Buildings on Permafrost”, was successfully defended by Alexander Nikiforov from the North-Eastern Federal University, Institute of Engineering and Technology.

Alexander Fedorov, MPI Vice-Director, was awarded the Doktor Nauk (a higher tier of doctorate) degree in geography for his study on "Evolution and Dynamics of Permafrost Landscapes in Yakutia". The Doktor Nauk in engineering was awarded to Sergey Velikin, Head of the MPI’s station in Chernyshevsky, who presented a dissertation summarizing his many years of research on "Integration of Geophysical Methods for Assessing the Condition of Permafrost Foundations of Water-Retaining Structures and Mine Facilities in the Yakutian Diamond Province".

Photos: Andrey Zhang examines ice-rich permafrost along the Lena Highway route (u);
Anatoly Kirillin on a snow survey in the Elkon Horst, southern Yakutia (l).