The underground laboratory, a 30-m-long two-layer tunnel beneath the Institute’s building, was constructed in 1967 to study perennially frozen materials under natural conditions.

This facility provides an area for testing and experimentation of various kinds in its natural-cold chambers for the Institute’s staff, as well as for investigators from other research institutes and organizations.

The chambers of the underground laboratory are often used for temporary storage of objects that require constant subfreezing temperatures to prevent decay. One stored, for example, the carcass of a mammoth calf found in the summer of 1977 in the Upper Kolyma. A plaster cast of this baby mammoth named Dima is now on display in the upper gallery of the tunnel. Another famous finding, an extremely well-preserved head of the “Yukaghir” mammoth discovered in Yakutia in 2003, was placed here for a short while.

Continuing to serve as a natural cold location for testing and experimentation, the underground laboratory in permafrost has become a popular tourist site, providing an extraordinary experience for local and international visitors.

The Underground Laboratory is located beneath the main building of the Melnikov Permafrost Institute at 36 Merzlotnaya St., Yakutsk, Republic of Sakha/Yakutia.

Guided tours are available daily, except on public holidays, from 9 am to 5 pm by prior arrangement.

Tours are guided by Institute’s research personnel therefore all visits must be made by prior appointment. For more information and arrangements, please contact:

Rozalia Ivanova

Tel.: 7-4112-334423

Mobile: +7 914-290-73-76

Email: r.n.ivanova@mpi.ysn.ru

              Mammoth sculpture                                        Underground laboratory, upper gallery