OBRUCHEV, VLADIMIR AFANASIEVICH(1863–1956), Russian scientist, writer. Member of the USSR Academy of Sciences (1929). Honorary President of the Geographical Society of the USSR. Hero Socialist Labor(1945). Laureate of the Prize named after. V.I. Lenin (1929), USSR State Prize (1941, 1950).
Born October 10, 1863 in the village. Klepenino, Rzhev district, Tver province, in a military family. After graduating from the St. Petersburg Mining Institute (1886), he took part in numerous expeditions to the Transcaspian steppes, Mongolia, Northern China, gold-bearing regions of Siberia, Transbaikalia, Altai, and border Dzungaria. Among more than 1000 scientific works Obruchev's three-volume Geology of Siberia (1935–1938) and the five-volume History of Geological Research of Siberia (1931–1949).
Back in student years wrote humorous stories and poetry. Among the works are Siberian Letters (1888–1892), written in co-authorship with his mother, reflecting what he saw on expeditions, as well as the independently created geographical story Gold Diggers in the Desert (1928), the novel Mine “Wretched” (1929) about the work of Russian and Chinese workers in Siberian mines at the beginning of the century, books From Kyakhta to Kulja (1940) about travels in Mongolia and China in 1892–1895, My travels in Siberia (1948), Through mountains and deserts Central Asia(1948), geographical story In the wilds of Central Asia. Notes of a treasure hunter (1951).
Standing apart are the science fiction stories Incident in Neskuchny Garden (another name Event in Neskuchny Garden, 1940), Flight on the Planets (1950), which are based on the idea of the possibility of time travel, the prospects for the exploration of space and terrestrial spaces. However, the most popular works Obruchev the prose writer – science fiction novels Plutonium and Sannikov’s Earth, which laid the foundation for the Soviet science fiction.
Written in 1915 and published in 1924, Plutonium's novel is dedicated to a journey into the depths of the Earth. The plot is based on the “hollow Earth” theory, popular at the time. The scientific value of this idea is more than doubtful, but its mystical significance is undeniable. Here, many of the mythological elements that underlay the legends about Hyperborea, the South Pole, higher races and ancestral peoples located under the earth's surface come to life again.
The novel Earth of Sannikov (written in 1924, published in 1926) is a version of the same story, but much improved and largely devoid of the weaknesses that abounded in the first novel. One of the heroes, a former student of St. Petersburg University, now a political exile, based on indirect data, in particular the routes of polar birds and information about the Onkilon people who once lived in the North, suggests that there is an unknown land in the Arctic Ocean between Bennett Island and the New Siberian Islands. After a difficult journey through snow-covered spaces and across the ocean, the expedition finds the mysterious Sannikov Land. The volcano basin, surrounded on all sides by cliffs, has its own unique climate, long-haired rhinoceroses and mammoths are preserved there, unprecedented grasses and trees grow. In addition to the Onkilon people who came here, “wampus” live here - people of the Stone Age. After spending four months in this unusual country and experiencing all sorts of adventures, the members of the expedition leave Sannikov Land, which is dying due to irreversible geological changes. In this case, one of the expedition members, as well as all collections and records, perish. The novel is full of action and interesting details. The film adaptation made in 1972 (dir. A.S. Mkrtchyan, L. Popov), despite the fact that the film featured excellent actors, did not retain any of the remarkable details and twists and turns of the plot.
Obruchev died in Zvenigorod on June 19, 1956.
Obruchev Vladimir Afanasyevich - famous Russian geologist, academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
A romantic, a dreamer, a philosopher, a champion of mercy and justice, and, at the same time, a scientist with a large supply of fundamental knowledge - this is not a complete list of the characteristics of V.A. Obruchev.
Having lived quite a long and very rich life, he left behind not only scientific works on the geology of the Asian regions of Russia, tectonic studies of the origin of forests, permafrost areas, paleontology, but also several works of art adventure-fantasy genre.
Brief biography of Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev
On October 10, 1863, a second child appeared in the family of army officer Afanasy Aleksandrovich Obruchev. The boy was named. His mother, Polina Karlovna, a German by nationality, was the daughter of a Lutheran pastor. She herself was involved in raising her six children, instilling in them the strictest discipline and observance of order.
After numerous moves, the Obruchev family settled in Vilna. Volodya entered a real school, graduated with excellent grades and in 1881 entered the Mining Institute in. Choice educational institution successfully combined a childhood dream of travel and adventure with a practical task current situation provide for yourself financially.
The poor family could not provide the young man with financial support; he had to rely only on himself. Obruchev proved himself not only as a diligent and diligent, but also a talented student. In 1886 he graduated from the institute and received the title of mining engineer.
Great influence on further professional activity was influenced by the famous geologist I.V. Mushketov, whose lectures were the most popular at the institute. It was Mushketov’s authority that prompted Obruchev to study in more detail the Asian part of Russia and Mongolia and China bordering it.
Traveler and scientist
Starting his geological research in the Caspian regions, Obruchev studied the Karakum desert well and wrote the book “Trans-Caspian Lowland,” which remained relevant for Soviet geologists. Beginning in 1889, Obruchev began studying the geology of Eastern Siberia.
Reports on these studies attracted the attention of I.V. Mushketov and he recommended that the Russian Geographical Society include Obruchev in the expedition of the famous traveler G.N. Potanin, which went to Central Asia. This was Vladimir Afanasyevich’s long-standing dream.
The geology of Northern China and the eastern half of Central Asia remained a mystery to world geology. During the expedition, Obruchev was able to explore not only the steppes, but also the Gobi Desert, the sands of Ordos, the loess territories of Northern China, and the mountain ranges of the Eastern and Western Nanshan. The expedition route crossed the Khami Desert and the Eastern Tien Shan.
In terms of the amount of material collected by Obruchev and the scale of coverage of the regions of Central Asia. The results of this expedition remain unsurpassed to this day. Obruchev visited places where no European had ever set foot before and filled in many “blank spots” on the map of Central Asia.
The results of this expedition put the name of Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev on a par with the names of major world scientists and travelers. Chinese geologists still use Obruchev's scientific materials. Everyone else professional studies Obruchev are associated with the study of the Siberian region. Their result was the writing of a multi-volume monograph “History of Geological Exploration of Siberia,” which the scientist completed during.
Scientific publicist and writer
The desire to popularize scientific research prompted Obruchev to start writing popular science articles, and this fascinated him so much that he moved from articles to writing science fiction novels. Among our contemporaries, just as almost a century ago, novels authored by Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev “Sannikov Land” and “Plutonia” are popular.
Romance, the dream of a new civilization, the desire for idealism, and faith in a new community are based on the heroes of his works not on empty fantasies - the foundation is genuine scientific hypotheses and factual materials. By reading these works, the reader strives to learn more and this encourages him to expand his horizons.
Vladimir Afanasyevich lived a long and very fruitful life, which is an example of selfless service to the Fatherland, scientific labor feat for the benefit of the Motherland.
Obruchev Vladimir Afanasyevich (1863-1956)
Obruchev Vladimir Afanasyevich- Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences (1929), Hero of Socialist Labor (1945). Researcher of Siberia, Central and Middle Asia. He discovered a number of ridges in the Nanshan mountain system, the Daursky and Borschovochny ridges, and explored the Beishan Highlands. Main works on the geological structure of Siberia and its mineral resources, tectonics, neotectonics, and permafrost studies. Author famous novels"Plutonia" (1924) and "Sannikov Land" (1926). Lenin Prize laureate (1926) and Stalin Prize (1941, 1950).Beginning of the biography
Obruchev was born on October 10 (September 28, Old Style) 1863 in the village of Klepenino, Rzhev district, Tver province, in the family of retired colonel Afanasy Aleksandrovich Obruchev and Polina Karlovna Gertner, the daughter of a German pastor.
After graduating from the Vilna Real School in 1881, Vladimir entered the St. Petersburg Mining Institute, and graduated in 1886.
During his student years, Vladimir Obruchev began writing poetry; many were subsequently dedicated to his love - Lisa. The first story, “The Sea is Noisy,” appeared during the holidays after the second year in the newspaper “Son of the Fatherland” in June 1887. He liked to compose, especially since Stasyulevich himself, the editor of the reputable magazine “Bulletin of Europe”, after reading his poetry, strongly advised not to give up literary searches. In 1887 - 1895, his stories and essays were published in St. Petersburg newspapers. Obruchev even once decided to quit the Mining Institute for the sake of literature. However, a new teacher appeared at the institute, the famous traveler I.V. Mushketov, who had a huge influence on Obruchev, and subsequently became his friend.
The year 1887 becomes a turning point of sorts for Vladimir Obruchev. He has just returned from his first expedition, in February he will marry Lisa - Elizaveta Isaakievna Lurie, and they are already expecting a child. Vladimir writes his first report on the expedition, after which he fell in love with the bleak desert landscapes of Central Asia for the rest of his life. He did not know that, having made three expeditions to the Trans-Caspian region, he would see this area again only after many decades.
In September 1888, Obruchev traveled to Irkutsk with his wife and infant, where the first state position of geologist in Siberia at the Mining Department awaits him. He was recommended for this position by I.V. Musketov. In Siberia, he is constantly on expeditions - studying reserves of mica and amazing blue stone - lapis lazuli, from which jewelry and precious vases were carved.
In the summer of 1890, Obruchev set off from Irkutsk to the north to study the gold-bearing region located in the basin of the Vitim and Olekma rivers. The following summer, he repeated the trip to the Olekmo-Vitim mines, and then received an unexpected offer from the famous traveler G.N. Potanin, heading to China and Southern Tibet.
Travel to Central Asia
Obruchev Vladimir Afanasyevich
In early January 1893, Obruchev left Beijing for the loess regions of Northern China, while Potanin headed to the outskirts of Tibet, to the province of Sichuan.
Loess is a fertile yellow soil consisting of small grains of sand, with particles of clay and lime, covering vast areas of Northern China. Obruchev saw entire villages, cave houses that were dug into the cliffs of the loess; In China, dishes and bricks are made from it, but most importantly, it is fertile soil that produces excellent harvests. Obruchev put forward a hypothesis explaining the origin of loess.
In the city of Suzhou, which is located on the outskirts of the Nanshan mountain ranges and deserts covering northern regions China, Obruchev began and ended all his Central Asian expeditions. He reached the high-mountain lake Kukunor - the beautiful Blue Lake, located at an altitude of more than three thousand meters. For the sake of this lake, Humboldt at one time learned the Persian language, intending to go to it through Persia and India, since the route through Russia was then closed.
In September 1893, Obruchev returned to Suzhou, completing a large circular route, and a month later he set off on a new journey - to the north, into the depths of Chinese and Mongolian deserts. He wanted to study the nature of the central part of the Gobi. He had to pave the road in a roundabout way - through Alashan to the Yellow River, since he could not find a guide. The entire surface of the Alashan plain was covered with fragments of dark brown stones. Even white quartz seemed to burn and turn black under the merciless sun. He crossed the ice of the Yellow River, constantly sprinkling sand under the camels' feet - otherwise they would slip and could not advance, and entered the shifting sands of Ordos. Obruchev then went south across the Qinling Range, where he was to meet Potanin. But having learned that Potanin was returning to his homeland, Obruchev turned northwest - again through the Qinling Mountains, wanting to get to remote areas of Central Asia, where Chinese researchers had not yet been.
Over the years, he has walked 13,625 kilometers! And he conducted geological research at almost every one of them. The collected collection contained seven thousand specimens, about 1,200 imprints of fossil animals and plants. But most importantly, he collected fundamental information about the geography and geology of Central Asia, continuing the work begun by Russian researchers.
Life and activities after the trip
Obruchev returned to St. Petersburg in 1894, already world famous. His letters from China, articles and travel stories were published in newspapers and magazines. The Paris Academy of Sciences awarded him the P. A. Chikhachev Prize. A year later, Obruchev received the N. M. Przhevalsky Prize, and a year later - the highest award of the Russian Geographical Society - the Konstantinov Gold Medal.
His work “Central Asia, Northern China and Nanshan” in two volumes was published in 1900-1901. He made a popular description of his trip to Central Asia 45 years later, publishing the book “From Kyakhta to Kulja” in 1940.
In 1895, Obruchev went to Eastern Siberia as the head of a mining party, whose task is to study the areas adjacent to the Trans-Siberian Railway under construction. He devoted more than three years to studying Transbaikalia, then returned to St. Petersburg again.
In 1901, Vladimir Afanasyevich went to Siberia for the third time to continue studying the Lena gold-bearing region. He agreed to the proposal of the director of the newly opened technological institute in Tomsk to occupy the department of geology and organize a mining department. Upon his arrival in Siberia, Obruchev spent the summer conducting research in the Lena-Vitim gold-bearing region and made a geological survey of the Bodaibo River basin. From that time on, for eleven years (1901-1912), Obruchev gave himself pedagogical activity, but does not abandon his research trips. With funds provided by the institute, in 1905-1906 and 1909, he made three trips to the border Dzungaria (Xinjiang). Research in this area, which is the junction of two large mountain systems - Altai and Tien Shan, allowed him to better understand the geological structure of the Asian continent.
At the beginning of 1912, Obruchev moved from Tomsk to Moscow, where he wrote a number of popular science works. During these same years, Obruchev wrote his first science fiction novel, Plutonia.
In 1920, the scientist was elected professor in the department of applied geology at the newly organized Moscow Mining Academy.
In 1936, when Obruchev was 73 years old, he made a long trip to Altai, where he examined mercury deposits and marble outcrops; the latter were intended for the construction of the Moscow metro.
Since 1947, Obruchev has been honorary president of the Geographical Society of the USSR.
Obruchev wrote the books “Sannikov Land”, “Plutonia”, “Wretched Mine”, “In the Wilds of Central Asia” (Notes of a Treasure Hunter), “Gold Diggers in the Desert” and a number of interesting autobiographical books: “My Travels in Siberia”, “From Kyakhta” to Kulja" and others. He also wrote a number of biographical essays about Russian explorers of Asia: Przhevalsky, Chersky, Mushketov, Potanin, Kropotkin, Komarov.
Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev lived a long, beautiful and very eventful life. He died in Moscow on June 19, 1956 at the age of 92.
Named after Obruchev: Scientific and Technical Library of the Tomsk Polytechnic University in Tomsk, a mountain range in Tuva, a mountain in the upper reaches of Vitim, an oasis in Antarctica, an underwater hill in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Kamchatka, an ancient volcano in Transbaikalia, a peak in Altai, a glacier in the Mongolian Altai. The steppe between the Murgab and Amu Darya rivers, first described by him, is called the Obruchev steppe. Streets in Irkutsk, Moscow, St. Petersburg and Tomsk are also named after Obruchev, and the mineral obruchevite (a hydrated uranium-ytrium variety of pyrochlore). For best works in Geology of Siberia, the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1938 established a prize named after. V. A. Obrucheva.
Married twice, 3 sons:
- Obruchev, Dmitry Vladimirovich, 1900-1970
- Obruchev, Vladimir Vladimirovich
Main research topics of Obruchev
- Origin of loess in Central and Middle Asia.
- Glaciation and permafrost in Siberia.
- General issues of tectonics and tectonic structure of Siberia.
- Geology of gold deposits in Siberia.
- The existence of the “ancient crown” of Asia.
Awards
- Order of St. Vladimir 4th class, 1895
- Order of the Red Banner of Labor, 1938
- 5 Orders of Lenin
- Order of the Red Banner of Labor of the MPR, 1948
- Medal "For Valiant Labor in the Great Fatherland" war 1941-1945."
- Medal "In memory of the 800th anniversary of Moscow"
- Medal “In Memory of the Kingdoms. Imp. Alexander III"
- Medal "25 years of the Mongolian People's Republic"
- Prize named after N. M. Przhevalsky
- Large gold Nikolaev medal of the Russian Geographical Society (1901)
- Prizes named after P. A. Chikhachev of the French Academy of Sciences (1898, 1925)
- First gold medal them. A. P. Karpinsky (1947)
- Prize named after V. I. Lenin (1926)
- Stalin Prize (1941, 1950).
Bibliography
Scientific
- “Geology of Siberia”, monograph, 3 volumes, 1935-1938
- "Selected works on the geography of Asia", 1952
- “Ilinskoe gold deposit in Eastern Transbaikalia”, 1916
- "History of geological exploration of Siberia", 5 volumes, 1931-1959
- "Tunguska coal basin"
Popular science books
- "Sea Fountains of Hawaii"
- "New Siberian meteorite"
- "The Origin of Lake Teletskoye"
- "Ancient Volcanoes in South Africa"
- "Formation of mountains and ore deposits", 1932
- “From Kyakhta to Kulja: Journey to Central Asia and China”, 1940 (Publishing House of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Moscow - Leningrad, 1940)
- "Fundamentals of Geology", 1944
- “My Travels in Siberia”, 1948 (Publishing House of the USSR Academy of Sciences, Moscow - Leningrad, 1948)
Articles
- "The Bodaibo River Basin: Preliminary report on the 1901 explorations in the Lena Mountain District", 1903.
- "River pool" Nakatami and its gold mines: extract from the official report", 1910
- “Memories of Prof. I. V. Mushketov", 1902
- “Geological research in the Kalbinsky ridge (Western Altai) in 1911”, 1912
- “On the geological exploration of Tarbagatay and Barlyk in 1905”, 1905
Textbooks
- "Field Geology", 1927
- "Ore deposits", 1928-29
Science fiction
- "Thermal Mine"
- "Plutonia", 1924
- “Sannikov’s Land”, 1926
- "Gold Diggers in the Desert", 1928
- "Journey to the Past and Future"
- "Coral island"
- “In the wilds of Central Asia”, 1951
Obruchev Vladimir Afanasyevich - Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences (1929), Hero of Socialist Labor (1945). Researcher of Siberia, Central and Middle Asia. He discovered a number of ridges in the Nanshan Mountains, the Daursky and Borschovochny ridges, and explored the Beishan Highlands. Main works on the geological structure of Siberia and its mineral resources, tectonics, neotectonics, and permafrost studies. Author of popular science books: "Plutonia" (1924), "Sannikov Land" (1926), etc. Lenin Prize (1926), USSR State Prize (1941, 1950).
Obruchev was born on October 10, 1863 in the family of retired colonel Afanasy Aleksandrovich Obruchev and Polina Karlovna Gertner, the daughter of a German pastor.
After graduating from the Vilna Real School in 1881, Vladimir entered the St. Petersburg Mining Institute, and graduated in 1886.
In September 1888, Obruchev traveled to Irkutsk, where the first government position as a geologist in Siberia awaited him. Mushketov recommended him for this position.
He is constantly on expeditions - studying reserves of mica and the amazing blue stone - lapis lazuli, from which jewelry and precious vases were carved.
In the summer of 1890, Obruchev set off from Irkutsk to the north to study the gold-bearing region located in the basin of the Vitim and Olekma rivers. The following summer, he repeated the trip to the Olekmo-Vitim mines, and then received an unexpected offer from the Russian Geographical Society to take part in the expedition of the famous traveler Potanin, heading to China and Southern Tibet.
In early January 1893, Obruchev left Beijing for the loess regions of Northern China. Potanin headed to the outskirts of Tibet, to the province of Sichuan.
Loess is a fertile yellow soil consisting of small grains of sand, with particles of clay and lime, covering vast areas of Northern China. Obruchev saw entire villages, whose cave houses were dug into the cliffs of the loess; In China, dishes and bricks are made from it, but most importantly, it is fertile soil that produces excellent harvests. Obruchev put forward a hypothesis explaining the origin of loess.
In the city of Suzhou, located on the outskirts of the Nanshan mountain ranges and the deserts that covered the northern regions of China, Obruchev began and ended all his Central Asian expeditions. He reached the high-mountain lake Kukunor - the beautiful Blue Lake, located at an altitude of more than three thousand meters. For the sake of this lake, Humboldt at one time learned the Persian language, intending to go to it through Persia and India, since the route through Russia was then closed.
In September 1893, Obruchev returned to Suzhou, completing a large circular route, and a month later he set off on a new journey - to the north, into the depths of the Chinese and Mongolian deserts. He wanted to study the nature of the central part of the Gobi. He had to pave the road in a roundabout way - through Alashan to the Yellow River, since he could not find a guide. The entire surface of the Alashan plain was covered with fragments of dark brown stones. Even white quartz seemed to burn and turn black under the merciless sun. He crossed the ice of the Yellow River, constantly sprinkling sand under the camels' feet - otherwise they would slip and could not advance, and entered the shifting sands of Ordos. Obruchev then went south across the Qinling ridge, where he was to meet Potanin. But I learned that Potanin was returning to his homeland.
Obruchev turned northwest - again through the Qinling Mountains, wanting to get to remote areas of Central Asia, where Chinese explorers had not yet been.
Little was known about Nanshan, where he was heading, and even less about its middle part. There was not even an accurate map of this area.
The valleys had long been blooming, and a snowstorm was blowing in the mountains, forcing the traveler to sit in a tent. When the snowstorm subsided, the hunters led Obruchev to the high passes of the ridge, to which he gave the name of the Russian Geographical Society. Then we had to move through eternal snow and glaciers...
Obruchev studied Middle Nanshan for six weeks. He clarified the location of three known mountain ranges and discovered four new ones. Here he found and examined two small rivers, not marked on maps, discovered large deposits of coal, and a little later he went to the Lyukchun basin, where there was a weather station set up by Roborovsky.
Over the years, he walked 13,625 kilometers... And he conducted geological research on almost every one of them. The collected collection contained seven thousand specimens, about 1,200 imprints of fossil animals and plants. But most importantly, he collected fundamental information about the geography and geology of Central Asia and actually completed its study - continuing the work begun by Russian researchers. In fact, there are no more “white spots” left in Central Asia.
Obruchev arrives in St. Petersburg already covered in worldwide fame. His letters from China, articles, and travel stories were published in newspapers and magazines. The Paris Academy of Sciences awards him the P. A. Chikhachev Prize. A year later, Obruchev received the N. M. Przhevalsky Prize, and a year later - the highest award of the Russian Geographical Society - the Konstantinov Gold Medal.
His work “Central Asia, Northern China and Nanshan” in two volumes was published in 1900-1901. He made a popular description of his trip to Central Asia 45 years later, publishing the book “From Kyakhta to Kulja” in 1940.
In 1895, Obruchev went to Eastern Siberia as the head of a mining party, whose task was to study the areas adjacent to the Trans-Siberian Railway under construction. He devoted more than three years to studying Transbaikalia, then returned to St. Petersburg again.
In 1901, Vladimir Afanasyevich was going to Siberia for the third time to continue studying the Lena gold-bearing region. He agrees to the proposal of the director of the newly opened technological institute in Tomsk to occupy the department of geology and organize a mining department. Upon his arrival in Siberia, Obruchev spent the summer conducting research in the Lena-Vitim gold-bearing region and made a geological survey of the Bodaibo River basin. From that time, for eleven years (1901-1912), Obruchev devoted himself to teaching, but did not abandon his research trips. With funds allocated by the institute, in 1905-1906 and 1909, he made three trips to the border Dzungaria (Xinjiang). Research in this area, which is the junction of two large mountain systems - Altai and Tien Shan, allowed him to better understand the geological structure of the Asian continent.
At the beginning of 1912, Obruchev moved from Tomsk to Moscow, where he wrote a number of popular science works. During these same years, Obruchev wrote his first science fiction novel, Plutonia.
In 1920, the scientist was elected professor in the department of applied geology at the newly organized Moscow Mining Academy.
Working on scientific problems and being engaged in teaching activities, Vladimir Afanasyevich no longer goes on long journeys, but every year, from 1923 to 1928, he travels to the Caucasus, to Kislovodsk, where he makes excursions to the surrounding mountains.
In 1936, when Obruchev was 73 years old, he made a long trip to the Altai mountains, where he examined mercury deposits and marble outcrops; the latter were intended for the construction of the Moscow metro.
Obruchev wrote the books “Sannikov Land”, “Plutonia”, “Wretched Mine”, “In the Wilds of Central Asia” (Notes of a Treasure Hunter), “Gold Diggers in the Desert” and a number of interesting autobiographical books: “My Travels in Siberia”, “From Kyakhta” to Kulja" and others. He also wrote a number of biographical essays about Russian explorers of Asia: Przhevalsky, Chersky, Mushketov, Potanin, Kropotkin, Komarov.
Scientists named the mineral found by Vladimir Afanasyevich “Obruchevit.” His name is given to: an ancient volcano in Transbaikalia, a peak in the Altai Mountains, a glacier in the Mongolian Altai. The steppe between the Murgab and Amu Darya rivers, first described by him, is called the Obruchev steppe.
Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev was born on September 28 (October 10), 1863 in the village of Klepenino, Tver province, into the family of an officer. After graduating from a real school in Vilna in 1881, he entered the St. Petersburg Mining Institute. In 1888 he went to Irkutsk to work as a geologist. He devoted the following years to studying the geology of Siberia. Since 1890, he conducted research into gold-bearing areas of northern Siberia. Traveled extensively throughout Central and Central Asia. In 1895, he was the head of an expedition that studied the areas where the Trans-Siberian Railway was being built. From 1901 to 1912, he devoted himself to teaching activities, but did not leave research trips to Asia. In 1912 he moved to Moscow, where he wrote several popular science books and the novel “Plutonia,” which laid the foundation for Russian science fiction. From 1920 he worked at the Moscow Mining Academy, no longer took part in large expeditions, and wrote a lot. In 1929 he became an academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences. In 1936, he went on an expedition to the Altai mountains for the last time. Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev died on June 19, 1956 in Moscow. Over the years of scientific activity, he received many awards and prizes and made a huge contribution to the study of the geology of Siberia and some regions of Central and Central Asia.
Siberia has practically inexhaustible natural resources, including minerals, endless forests, and valuable animals and plants. Now all these resources make up a significant share of the Russian economy, supporting many areas of industry. But even a century ago the situation was completely different - very little was known about what Siberia was rich in, and because of this ignorance, some resources were imported into the region from the European part of Russia.
Boundless Siberia has always interested people who lived east and south of it. This interest was caused primarily by gold deposits. Once upon a time, Mongol-Tatars lived in Siberia, but these vast territories went to the Russians, although other peoples, including Europeans, also laid claim to them.
Siberia really began to be explored several centuries after its development began. The names of many scientists and travelers have gone down in history, but among them there are those who changed ideas about Siberia. Such was the geologist, geographer, paleontologist and gifted writer Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev.
Since 1888, Vladimir Obruchev devoted himself almost completely to the study of the geology of Siberia, and many years later voluminous works were published, which collected all the results of the researcher’s work. These are the three-volume “Geology of Siberia,” published in 1935–1938, and the five-volume “History of Geological Research of Siberia,” published from 1931 to 1949. By the way, these works have still not lost their relevance.
From the very beginning of his work in Siberia, Obruchev conducted geological research. Thus, in the first year of his stay in Irkutsk, he explored mica reserves and studied deposits of the mineral lapis lazuli, which has excellent decorative qualities. Obruchev constantly traveled around the region, collecting data on its geological features. A few years later, Obruchev conducted a number of important surveys in the basins of large tributaries of the Lena - Vitim and Olekma. This area contains huge gold deposits of strategic importance. The geologist collected a lot of valuable data about this area.
In 1895, after a long journey through Central Asia, Obruchev went to Siberia. He was given the task of studying as fully as possible the geology of the areas adjacent to the Trans-Siberian Railway under construction. The researcher's expedition spent more than three years in Transbaikalia and collected rich material that helped develop a further strategy for using this region.
In 1901, Vladimir Obruchev returned to Siberia again to continue exploring gold-bearing areas in the Lena basin. This time he collected a lot more geological data about the Bodaibo River basin.
The scientist never visited Siberia again, but all his achievements in previous years turned out to be so large-scale and valuable that he was recognized as one of the most active researchers of the geology of distant lands. The value of Vladimir Obruchev’s work was fully recognized by the scientific community and the state; it became the basis for expanding activities in the extraction of gold and other valuable minerals, including minerals. Much later, in those places where Obruchev was with expeditions, villages and entire cities grew up.
