Soviet science institutes photographed by Eric Lusito
Photographer Eric Lusito documents surviving Soviet-era scientific institutes across former USSR states, now published in the book 'Soviet Scientific Institutes' by FUEL. The images capture control panels, murals, and equipment at sites like the Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory in Armenia, the UTR-2 radio telescope in Ukraine, and the Big Solar Furnace in Uzbekistan. Many facilities fell into disrepair after the USSR collapsed in 1991, but some scientists continued research. For example, the Assy-Turgen observatory in Kazakhstan resumed construction in 2014 and began operating in 2017. The Aragats cosmic ray station in Armenia survived through international grants and diaspora support. The book highlights both the utopian ideals of Soviet science and the resilience of researchers today.
Key facts
- Book 'Soviet Scientific Institutes' by Eric Lusito published by FUEL
- Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory founded in 1946 by Viktor Ambartsumian
- Assy-Turgen observatory's 1.5-metre AZT-20 telescope began operating in 2017
- UTR-2 is the world's largest low-frequency radio telescope, covering 15 hectares
- Big Solar Furnace in Uzbekistan built in 1981, uses 10,700 mirrors
- VVR-S nuclear reactor in Romania was first USSR-approved reactor outside its borders, operational 1956-1997
- Kharkiv Institute achieved helium liquefaction in 1932, leading to discovery of type II superconductivity
- Aragats cosmic ray station continued via international grants and Armenian diaspora support
Entities
Artists
- Eric Lusito
- Viktor Ambartsumian
- Abram Slutskin
- Lev Shubnikov
- Artem Alikhanian
- Alexei Leonov
- Henrik Sargsyan
Institutions
- Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory
- Armenian National Academy of Sciences
- Usikov Institute for Radiophysics and Electronics
- National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
- Andronikashvili Institute of Physics
- Fesenkov Astrophysical Institute
- Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology
- Alikhanyan National Science Laboratory
- Institute of Radio Astronomy
- Interdepartmental Training and Technology Centre for High-Voltage Pulse Engineering
- Polytechnic Institute Kharkiv
- Yerevan Physics Institute
- Institute of Materials Science of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences
- Horia Hulubei National Institute for Research and Development in Physics and Nuclear Engineering
- FUEL
Locations
- Byurakan
- Armenia
- Tbilisi
- Georgia
- Assy-Turgen
- Kazakhstan
- Kharkiv
- Ukraine
- Aragats
- Yerevan
- Mǎgurele
- Romania
- Uzbekistan