Jubilees

Colleague, friend, mentor

On 1 April, a seminar dedicated to the 80th anniversary of Alexander Ivanovich MALAKHOV and the 55th anniversary of his work at the Joint Institute was held in the Conference hall of the Laboratory of High Energy Physics.

JINR Scientific Leader Victor Matveev made a welcoming speech to the participants and congratulations to the hero of the day, "It is a great honor and pleasure for me on behalf of the Institute's Directorate, multinational staff and scientists to congratulate you on such a significant date. We all know, respect and love Alexander Ivanovich. His whole life is dedicated to the development of the Institute and nuclear physics. He has worked all his life in VBLHEP. He has gone from graduate student to director. Currently, he plays a key role in preparing a pilot programme for the NICA project. He has made a great contribution to the development of relativistic nuclear physics; he is a student of A.M. Baldin... I would like to cordially congratulate the entire Institute and wish you good health, inspiration and many years of scientific creativity."

VBLHEP Acting Director Andrey Butenko read out congratulations from the Laboratory staff, "Your life is a vivid example of serving the high ideals of science. Thanks to your organizational efforts and perseverance, LHEP employees have become full participants in key international collaborations on the basis of CERN. Your personal contribution to the development of a scientific shift cannot be overestimated. Over the years, you have been lecturing students, chairing the work of the Dissertation Council of the Laboratory, directing young scientists on the path of independent discoveries. Your exceptional human qualities: great care for colleagues, constant goodwill and sense of humor have earned deep respect and sincere appreciation of the entire staff."

Colleagues from MLIT came with congratulations. "When you meet Alexander Ivanovich, his sincerity and benevolence splash out on you. In addition, he has a great sense of humor. I envy VBLHEP," MLIT Deputy Scientific Leader Tatyana Strizh said.

Director of the Laboratory of Radiation Biology Alexander Bugay also expressed respect to the hero of the day and thanked for the diligence to the Laboratory's research.

A member of the JINR Scientific Council Academician Tseepeldorj Baatar congratulated A. I. Malakhov, "I am very glad to personally participate in the anniversary event. Mongolian high energy physicists have been working with you for years. In recent years, we have especially strengthened cooperation thanks to your help and initiative. I believe that cooperation goes well and we have got interesting results that we presented in reports at the A.M. Baldin seminar."

Rector of Dubna University Andrey Denikin highlighted that A. I. Malakhov that heads the Department of Physical and Technical Systems, is invaluable for the University. He expressed gratitude for working with students, for helping in the strategic partnership between the University and JINR.

To express respect and gratitude to the hero of the day, a scientist and colleague, the representatives of LPI, MISIS and MEPhI came from Moscow. >

PHOTON scintillation detectors. Early 1970s

The RIA Presidium awarded A. I. Malakhov the Order of Engineering Glory for his invaluable contribution and active engagement in the activities of the Russian and International Engineering Academies.

Head of Department of VBLHEP Anton Baldin expressed gratitude for the years of acquaintance and help at different stages of life, "We have known each other for over forty years. I am very glad that many today have already stated the benevolence of Alexander Ivanovich, this is his key quality." He told several situations that characterize the hero of the day, "The launch of Nuclotron fell on hard times: there was no money but there was a lot of antagonism from some structures that did not want him to work. And when it was necessary to make a decision to increase energy, everyone was afraid because if suddenly Nuclotron burns, then that was the end of everything. Alexander Ivanovich came to the accelerator console at night and made this decision, taking full responsibility as a director. Thank God, everything worked out. Much later, when teams of those who could receive bonuses for work were formed, despite the persuasion of JINR Director A.N. Sisakyan, Alexander Ivanovich withdrew his candidacy, believing that other employees that had made a huge contribution were not included in these lists. This is a very high moral cleanliness. Alexander Ivanovich is a wonderful person and I wish him to just be himself."

Several reports were given at the seminar. Alexander Ivanovich Malakhov spoke about his scientific path, presenting it through the awards received. The name for the report was a quote from the Soviet poet A. Nedogonov "A medal for battle and a medal for labor are poured from one metal". Telling about yourself is not an easy task and Alexander Ivanovich gracefully avoided "I-statements". He began his speech with the words that behind each medal is the work of many people, this is the result of cooperation. Further slides showed awards, events and portraits. One of the first awards was presented - "Winner of Social Competition" in 1974. A.I. Malakhov emphasized that social competitions can be treated differently, but this participation helped him: there were terms, responsibility and material resources.

Author of a 90-channel electromagnetic calorimeter on the lead glass of the PHOTON facility. Early 1970s

Visit of Director of Fermilab (USA). R. Wilson, A. I. Malakhov, Director of VBLHEP A.M. Baldin, JINR Scientific Secretary Yu. A. Shcherbakov. 1975.

Head of Sector of VBLHEP, BEKKEREL Project Leader Pavel Zarubin reviewed, "PHOTON - SPHERE - BEKKEREL: together 40 years in uniform". "I wanted to look back, to highlight the moments that in my projection seem important, milestone, dramatic. Some of them are not related to awards in the end but invisible efforts always result in something important that then seems self-evident," P.I. Zarubin expressed the idea of the report.

The report "Research on RICH and LHC" was given by Head of Sector of VBLHEP Sergey Afanasiev. The story was dedicated to how the experiments had occurred and the participation of JINR employees in them.

Senior researcher at VBLHEP Andrey Zaitsev prepared a report "Research on SPS and the development of the approach of A. M. Baldin". The report was dedicated to the NA61 experiment on the SPS accelerator at CERN and the results obtained thanks to the approach of A.M. Baldin. A group of employees from JINR is headed by A.I. Malakhov.

Maria KARPOVA
Photos by Igor LAPENKO and from the archive of Pavel ZARUBIN