Yulii Borisovich Khariton
Encyclopedia
Yulii Borisovich Khariton (Russian
: Ю́лий Бори́сович Харито́н, February 27, 1904 - December 18, 1996) was a Soviet
physicist
working in the field of nuclear power
. He was the chief designer of the Soviet atomic bomb, and worked in the Soviet nuclear program for many years.
, the main organ of the Constitutional Democratic Party
. In 1922, by Lenin's decree, the elder Khariton was expelled from Soviet Russia
on one of the so-called Philosophers' ships
, subsequently working for an emigrant newspaper in Latvia
. After the annexation of Latvia by the Soviet Union
, Boris Khariton was arrested by the NKVD
and died in GULAG
. Yulii's mother, Mira Burovskaya, was also an emigre and in the 1930s joined the Zionist immigration to the British colony of Palestine
. Yulii was forbidden to contact his parents after he had started classified work.
Khariton studied at the Leningrad Polytechnical Institute (1920–1925) under Abram Ioffe
and then at the University of Cambridge
(1926–1928) under Ernest Rutherford
, where he received a doctor's degree. From 1931–1946 he was head of the Explosion Laboratory at the Institute of Chemical Physics. In 1935 he received his doctorate in physical and mathematical sciences. During this period, Yulii Khariton and Yakov Zel'dovich
conducted experiments regarding chain reaction
s of uranium. He was elected as a corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1946, and as a full member in 1953. He received the Hero of Socialist Labor
award in 1949, 1951, and 1954; an Order of Lenin
in 1956; and three Stalin Prizes in 1949, 1951, and 1953. He also received a Gold Medal of I.V.Kurchatov in 1974 and a Great Gold Medal of M.V.Lomonosov in 1982.
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
: Ю́лий Бори́сович Харито́н, February 27, 1904 - December 18, 1996) was a Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
working in the field of nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
. He was the chief designer of the Soviet atomic bomb, and worked in the Soviet nuclear program for many years.
Biography
Yulii Khariton was born to journalist Boris Osipovich Khariton and actress Mirra Yakovlevna Burovskaya, a Jewish family. His father worked for the newspaper RechRech (newspaper)
Rech was a Russian daily newspaper and the central organ of the Constitutional Democratic Party. Rech was published in St. Petersburg from February 1906 to October 1917....
, the main organ of the Constitutional Democratic Party
Constitutional Democratic party
The Constitutional Democratic Party was a liberal political party in the Russian Empire. Party members were called Kadets, from the abbreviation K-D of the party name...
. In 1922, by Lenin's decree, the elder Khariton was expelled from Soviet Russia
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
on one of the so-called Philosophers' ships
Philosophers' ships
Philosophers' ships is the collective name of several boats that carried Soviet expellees abroad.The main load was handled by two German boats, the Oberbürgermeister Haken and the Preussen, which transported more than 160 expelled Russian intellectuals in September and November 1922 from Petrograd...
, subsequently working for an emigrant newspaper in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. After the annexation of Latvia by the Soviet Union
Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940
The Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 refers, according to the European Court of Human Rights, the Government of Latvia, the State Department of the United States of America, and the European Union, to the military occupation of the Republic of Latvia by the Soviet Union ostensibly under the...
, Boris Khariton was arrested by the NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
and died in GULAG
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
. Yulii's mother, Mira Burovskaya, was also an emigre and in the 1930s joined the Zionist immigration to the British colony of Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. Yulii was forbidden to contact his parents after he had started classified work.
Khariton studied at the Leningrad Polytechnical Institute (1920–1925) under Abram Ioffe
Abram Ioffe
Abram Fedorovich Ioffe was a prominent Russian/Soviet physicist. He received the Stalin Prize , the Lenin Prize , and the Hero of Socialist Labor . Ioffe was an expert in electromagnetism, radiology, crystals, high-impact physics, thermoelectricity and photoelectricity...
and then at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
(1926–1928) under Ernest Rutherford
Ernest Rutherford
Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson OM, FRS was a New Zealand-born British chemist and physicist who became known as the father of nuclear physics...
, where he received a doctor's degree. From 1931–1946 he was head of the Explosion Laboratory at the Institute of Chemical Physics. In 1935 he received his doctorate in physical and mathematical sciences. During this period, Yulii Khariton and Yakov Zel'dovich
Yakov Borisovich Zel'dovich
Yakov Borisovich Zel'dovich was a prolific Soviet physicist born in Belarus. He played an important role in the development of Soviet nuclear and thermonuclear weapons, and made important contributions to the fields of adsorption and catalysis, shock waves, nuclear physics, particle physics,...
conducted experiments regarding chain reaction
Chain reaction
A chain reaction is a sequence of reactions where a reactive product or by-product causes additional reactions to take place. In a chain reaction, positive feedback leads to a self-amplifying chain of events....
s of uranium. He was elected as a corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1946, and as a full member in 1953. He received the Hero of Socialist Labor
Hero of Socialist Labor
Hero of Socialist Labour was an honorary title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries. It was the highest degree of distinction for exceptional achievements in national economy and culture...
award in 1949, 1951, and 1954; an Order of Lenin
Order of Lenin
The Order of Lenin , named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union...
in 1956; and three Stalin Prizes in 1949, 1951, and 1953. He also received a Gold Medal of I.V.Kurchatov in 1974 and a Great Gold Medal of M.V.Lomonosov in 1982.
Awards
- Great Gold Medal of M.V.Lomonosov (1982)
- Gold Medal of I.V.Kurchatov (1974)
- Order of LeninOrder of LeninThe Order of Lenin , named after the leader of the Russian October Revolution, was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union...
(1956) - Hero of Socialist LaborHero of Socialist LaborHero of Socialist Labour was an honorary title in the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact countries. It was the highest degree of distinction for exceptional achievements in national economy and culture...
(1949, 1951, 1954) - Stalin Prize (1949, 1951, 1953)
External links
- Khariton's photo – from the Russian Academy of SciencesRussian Academy of SciencesThe Russian Academy of Sciences consists of the national academy of Russia and a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation as well as auxiliary scientific and social units like libraries, publishers and hospitals....
- Annotated bibliography for Yuli Khariton from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues
See also
- Russian AlsosRussian AlsosThe Russian Alsos was an operation which took place in early 1945 in Germany, Austria, and Czechoslovakia, and whose objectives were the exploitation of German atomic related facilities, intellectual materials, materiel resources, and scientific personnel for the benefit of the Soviet atomic bomb...
- Kharitonchik