Andrei Sakharov

Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov

Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov (Russian: Андрей Дмитриевич Сахаров; 21 May 1921 – 14 December 1989) was a Soviet physicist and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He won this prize in 1975 for working to protect human rights all over the world.

Sakharov worked on the Soviet program of nuclear weapons. He helped build very powerful weapons. He also studied tiny particles, magnetism, and the universe.

Sakharov is best known for his strong beliefs in individual freedom, human rights, and civil liberties. He wanted changes in the Soviet Union. Because of his ideas, the government saw him as a dissident and caused him trouble.

In his memory, the Sakharov Prize was created. Each year, the European Parliament gives this prize to people and groups who work hard to protect human rights and freedoms.

Life and career

Family background and early life

Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov was born in Moscow on 21 May 1921. His father was a physics professor and a pianist. His grandfather was a lawyer who believed in fair treatment. His mother’s family was from Greece.

Sakharov’s family had a big influence on him. After school, he studied physics and worked in a factory that made weapons. In 1943, he married Klavdia, and they had three children. He then joined a famous science institute in Moscow, where he did important research.

Soviet program of nuclear weapons

After World War II, Sakharov joined the Soviet program to build nuclear weapons. He helped make powerful bombs, including one of the largest ever made. Later, he thought about the dangers of these weapons and wanted peace.

Support for peaceful use of nuclear technology

In 1950, Sakharov proposed an idea for a controlled nuclear fusion reactor. This led to the development of a device called a tokamak.

Magneto-implosive generators

In 1951, he invented a way to create strong magnetic fields using explosives. He tested devices that could make very high magnetic fields and pulsed electricity.

Particle physics and cosmology

After 1965, Sakharov returned to fundamental science and worked on particle physics and the study of the universe. He tried to explain why the universe has more matter than antimatter.

Turn to activism

Since the late 1950s, Sakharov worried about the moral and political effects of his work. He spoke out against unfair treatment of scientists and for better human rights in the Soviet Union. He became a well-known voice for change and freedom.

Nobel Peace Prize (1975)

Sakharov was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1975 for his work on human rights around the world. He was not allowed to leave the Soviet Union to collect the prize, so his wife read his speech instead.

Internal exile (1980–1986)

Sakharov was arrested in 1980 for protesting against the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan and was sent to live in Gorky, now Nizhny Novgorod. He was watched closely and had many difficulties.

Political leader

In the late 1980s, Sakharov became involved in political opposition in the Soviet Union. He helped start independent groups and was elected to the new parliament.

Death

Sakharov died on 14 December 1989 at the age of 68. He is buried in Moscow.

Influence

The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought was started in 1988 by the European Parliament to honor people who work for human rights, like Andrei Sakharov. The European Union gives this award every year.

There is also an Andrei Sakharov prize given by the American Physical Society every two years to scientists who support human rights. There is also the Andrei Sakharov Prize for Writer's Civic Courage, which began in 1990.

In 2004, a special prize for journalism was created in Russia by Yelena Bonner. It rewards reporters who show strong beliefs in their work. Famous writers like Anna Politkovskaya have won this prize.

The Andrei Sakharov Archives and Human Rights Center started at Brandeis University in 1993 and is now at Harvard University. These archives have important letters and documents from 1968 to 1991, showing people who stood up for their beliefs during that time in the Soviet Union. The documents were published by the Yale University Press in 2005 and can be found online.

Legacy and remembrance

Places

• A public Sakharov Center operated in Moscow until 2023.
• In the 1980s, a street in Washington, D.C. in front of the Soviet embassy was renamed "Andrei Sakharov Plaza" to show support for him.
• In Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, a square is named after him.
• The Sakharov Gardens are located at the entrance to Jerusalem, Israel. There is also a street named after him in Haifa.
• In Nizhny Novgorod, there is a museum in the apartment where Sakharov's family lived. A monument to him was erected there in 2014.
• In Saint Petersburg, there is a monument and a park named after him.
• In 1979, an asteroid was named 1979 Sakharov after him.
• A square in Vilnius in front of the Press House is named after Sakharov.
• A street in the district of Pļavnieki in Riga, Latvia, is named after Sakharov.
• A square in downtown Nuremberg is named in his honor.
• In Belarus, International Sakharov Environmental University was named after him.
• An intersection in Studio City, Los Angeles is named Andrei Sakharov Square.
• In Arnhem, a bridge is called the Andrej Sacharovbrug.
• There is a street named after him in Assen, Netherlands, and in several other places in the Netherlands such as Amsterdam, Amstelveen, The Hague, Hellevoetsluis, Leiden, Purmerend, Rotterdam, Utrecht.
• A street in Copenhagen, Denmark.
• A street in Tournai, Belgium, is named in his honor.
• In Poland, streets in Warsaw, Łódź and Kraków are named after him.
• A boulevard in the district of Mladost in Sofia, Bulgaria, is named after him.
• In New York City, a street sign in Manhattan reads Sakharov-Bonner Corner, in honor of Sakharov and his wife, Yelena Bonner. The corner was where many protests took place.
• In Chişinău, the capital of Moldova, there is a street named after him.

Media

• There was a TV film in 1984 called Sakharov starring Jason Robards.
• In the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation, one of the Enterprise-D's Shuttlecraft is named after Sakharov.
• A spaceship in the novel 2010: Odyssey Two by Arthur C. Clarke is powered by a "Sakharov drive". The novel was published in 1982, when Sakharov was living in Nizhny Novgorod.
• Russian singer Alexander Gradsky wrote and performed a song called "Памяти А. Д. Сахарова" ("In memory of Andrei Sakharov").
• In the PC game S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl and its prequel, a scientist named Professor Sakharov leads a group.

Honours and awards

Andrei Sakharov received many important awards for his work. He was named a Hero of Socialist Labour three times and won high honors from the Soviet government, such as the Lenin Prize and the Stalin Prize.

Later, Sakharov was recognized around the world. He joined the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences. In 1975, he won the Nobel Peace Prize for supporting human rights. Even when the Soviet government took away his awards, Sakharov refused to accept them back. He also received honors from other countries, including the Prix mondial Cino Del Duca and, after he died, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Vytis in 2003.