Uranium Commission of the USSR Academy of Sciences
우라늄위원회
A nuclear research coordinating body established on 30 July 1940 under the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Created at the initiative of Vladimir Vernadsky and Vitaly Khlopin, with Khlopin as chairman, its mandate covered uranium deposit exploration, isotope separation, and feasibility studies of a chain reaction. The German invasion of 1941 halted its work, and it was superseded by the State Defence Committee resolution of September 1942.
In depth
Background
After Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann's discovery of uranium fission in 1938, discussion of the military potential of nuclear energy accelerated in Soviet scientific circles. In 1939, Yakov Frenkel performed the first theoretical calculations on the continuum mechanics of fission; in 1940, Georgy Flyorov and Konstantin Petrzhak discovered spontaneous fission of uranium nuclei.
In June 1940, Vladimir Vernadsky and Vitaly Khlopin submitted a joint memorandum to the Academy of Sciences urging the institutionalisation of uranium research and exploration of uranium deposits. The memorandum was reviewed by the Presidium on 16 July, and two weeks later, on 30 July, Protocol No. 21 formally established the Uranium Commission.
Composition
Vitaly Khlopin, director of the Radium Institute, served as chairman. The commission included leading academicians: Vladimir Vernadsky, Abram Ioffe, Alexander Fersman, Sergei Vavilov, Pyotr Lazarev, Alexander Frumkin, Leonid Mandelstam, and Gleb Krzhizhanovsky. Research staff included Igor Kurchatov, Dmitry Shcherbakov, Yulii Khariton, and Alexander Vinogradov.
Activities and Limitations
During 1940–1941, the commission carried out extensive organisational work: planning uranium deposit surveys, evaluating isotope separation methods, assessing uranium-235 enrichment feasibility, and coordinating experimental programmes on chain reactions. The German invasion of June 1941 scattered research personnel into wartime duties and forced the Radium Institute's evacuation to Kazan, effectively halting the commission's work.
Aftermath
In spring 1942, Flyorov's warning letter to Stalin, combined with Soviet intelligence reports on Anglo-American nuclear weapons development, prompted State Defence Committee Resolution No. 2352 of 28 September 1942, "On the Organisation of Work on Uranium." The commission's coordinating functions were absorbed into the GKO-directed atomic project, which later evolved into the Special Committee system under Lavrentiy Beria.
Related people
Related historical events
Sources
- Wikipedia (RU) formation of the Uranium Commission under Khlopin's chairmanship as part of pre-1941 atomic research; notes that the commission was formed under the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences
- Wikipedia (RU) confirms the commission was created in 1940 under Khlopin, conducted extensive organisational work in 1940–1941, and was established via repeated appeals by Vernadsky, Fersman, and Khlopin
- vernadsky.ru Vernadsky Foundation article: confirms 30 July 1940 formation date, June 1940 Vernadsky-Khlopin memorandum, 16 July Presidium review, commission composition including Khlopin, Vernadsky, and Kurchatov
- rosatomtech.ru Rosatom article: confirms Khlopin appointed chairman of the Committee on the Uranium Problem in 1940, lists commission members (Vernadsky, Ioffe, Fersman, Vavilov, Lazarev, Frumkin, Mandelstam, Krzhizhanovsky, Kurchatov, Shcherbakov, Khariton, Vinogradov)
- nsrus.ru Nuclear Society of Russia: confirms creation of Uranium Commission by the Presidium, chaired by Khlopin; commission's agenda included uranium deposit searches, chain reaction feasibility, and isotope separation methods
- api.pageplace.de 'The History of the Soviet Atomic Industry' (Taylor & Francis): confirms 30 July 1940 establishment date, Vernadsky-Khlopin initiative, commission objectives, and full membership list