Evgeny Velikhov

Biography

Evgeny Pavlovich Velikhov (Russian: Евгений Павлович Велихов; 2 February 1935 – 5 December 2024) was a Russian physicist and scientific leader. His scientific interests included plasma physics, lasers, controlled nuclear fusion, power engineering, and magnetohydrodynamics (high-power pulsed MHD generators). He was the author of over 1500 scientific publications and a number of inventions and discoveries.

Velikhov held the post of president of the Kurchatov Institute (named after Igor Kurchatov) and first Secretary (head) of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation. He was a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the vice-president of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union.