The Arctic has been providing Russia with large amounts of oil and natural gas over the last century. The environmentally sensitive region will face many natural and social impacts if the hydrocarbon industry continues to work in this way, however, the state’s leadership would not like the business to stop. The recent study of Sidortsov…
Warming up and powering down – vulnerability of the Russian power industry to the climate change
Researchers from the Moscow Power Engineering Institute have assessed the climate-related impacts on the Russian power industry up to 2050. They argue that current climate change deteriorates the efficiency of the power industries on the entire territory of Russia. They used a physical simulation approach to replicate a response of the steam and gas turbines performance to the…
Shiny happy rivers in Altai? Hydroenvironmental tension and recreational attractiveness
Chernova and other researchers from the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science and Gorno-Altaisk State University are studying the hydroclimatic conditions of the protected areas in Russian Altai. The Russian part of Altai is a region with unique landscapes which attracts tourists from all over the world. The regional natural heritage has a high…
Between two extremes: temperature shocks and violence in Russia
Whilst global climate science states that an increase in frequency of extremely hot or cold days is one of the most challenging impacts of climate change, the impact of extreme temperature on human health remains understudied (IPCC, 2018). Researchers based at IOS, Leibniz and NOVA SBE, Portugal examined social costs of climate change in Russia,…
Is climate change too expensive for Russia?
Otrachshenko and Popova, from Leibniz Institute for East and Southeast European Studies, have recently published a paper which discusses whether Russian economy can adapt to global warming. On 21st September 2019, Russia signed the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, which sets a long-term goal of limiting the global temperature increase to 2°C until 2030 and manifests…
Reading the future in an Arctic iced tea
Mironov, Klyachkin and Yulin from Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, St. Petersburg, have suggested new computer-based method of long-term ice forecasting for the Arctic Seas. These methods are currently tested by an experimental hardware-software complex called “Ice”. The year-round ice cover in the Arctic Ocean is one of the main features of the Arctic climate system, and the…
Melting permafrost, melting budgets – the wear and tear of Arctic infrastructure
Scientists from George Washington University and Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences have recently estimated the future costs of infrastructure affected by climate change in the Arctic region, specifically by the impacts of permafrost thaw. The research covers the countries with the biggest areas of permafrost, namely, Alaska, Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia….
Climate change is a positive change for the Arctic birds. #Russia #climate
Researchers from the Institute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences analyse the formation of modern Arctic mammals and discuss their future changes caused by climate change. They observed regional climate warming since the 1990s with visible effects such as rain- and snowfall increase, a decrease of Arctic glaciers, much warmer winters, etc. They found that…
A damaged ozone layer – a damaged climate? #Russia #climate
Seeking to reveal the connections between climate change and the destruction of the ozone layer, Dr. Syvorotkin, the leading researcher at the geology department, Moscow State University, proposed the “Hydrogen” concept and the “Degassing Concept of Global Disasters”. The core of the ‘hydrogen’ theory is that the ozone layer depletion is caused by the destructive chemical reaction…
Cottoning onto warmer farming in Central Asia #climate
Researchers from the Voeikov Main Geophysical Observatory, Saint Petersburg have assessed future climate change impacts on agriculture in the Central Asian republics. The analysis looks at the consequences of global warming for the main branches of agriculture in Central Asia, such as cotton, wheat and barley by the middle of 21st century. They found that…
Russian Climate Research 