70 years of victories and discoveries: ceremony marking JINR’s jubilee held in Mir Cultural Centre

On 26 March, the JINR Mir Cultural Centre hosted the celebration of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research anniversary. It was on this day 70 years ago that 12 countries signed the agreement to establish the international scientific centre at the Volga in 1956. Throughout its history, the Institute showed the highest results in fundamental science. Representatives of the Member States and Partner Countries congratulated JINR on the anniversary, and employees received awards.

JINR Director, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Grigory Trubnikov gave the opening speech. He discussed the beginning of JINR and quoted the words of the Institute’s first Director, Dmitry Ivanovich Blokhintsev, spoken at the first session of the JINR Scientific Council in 1956: “We talked about the difficult tasks that we face – particularly launching the large machine – but there is another difficult task […], the task of creating such an atmosphere at the Institute so that it would attract people and make them want to work and be creative here. This is a task, in fact, no less difficult than building even the most complex facility”.

Seventy years later, the Institute continues to be one of the world’s key nuclear research centres. Throughout its history, JINR was not only a scientific centre, but also a unique platform for multilateral international cooperation, intercultural interaction, and enlightenment. “The mission laid down in our foundation remains important, both then and now, to create a place of trust, open cooperation, and collaboration for scientists from any country. The fundamental laws of nature have no nationality, but they have a unifying value”, Grigory Trubnikov noted. “Search and openness to new things, scientific audacity, and the ability to focus on major tasks – all this is Dubna’s hallmark. At the same time, behind the big plans, the big facilities, every equation, every detail of the most complex equipment, there is a specific person. The contribution of each of you is priceless! Talented people with an unquenchable passion for science and bold ideas are the true treasure of our Institute”, the JINR Director concluded.

The Institute celebrates its anniversary fully prepared for the implementation of the most ambitious scientific tasks. A stable circulation of counter-rotating heavy ion beams was achieved at the NICA Collider, and a programme of research into the state of nuclear matter at extreme pressures and temperatures will soon be launched at NICA. In May, another experiment beyond the limits of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table will begin – the synthesis of the element 119. The largest deep underwater neutrino telescope in the Northern Hemisphere is gaining physical data in Lake Baikal. The Institute’s flagship facilities include the Govorun Supercomputer and the unique IBR-2 Pulsed Nuclear Reactor. JINR operates the world’s largest international Laboratory of Theoretical Physics. “JINR is positively entering a new stage in its history. We have everything: ambitious plans and highly qualified personnel, the support of countries, and a constellation of friendly institutes with which we work together on bright science”, Grigory Trubnikov emphasised and expressed gratitude to all JINR Member States, highlighting the contribution of the country the Institute is based in, the Russian Federation, to JINR’s sustainable development.

JINR CP Chair Arsen Khvedelidze noted: “It is a great privilege for me to represent the Committee of Plenipotentiaries of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. Its members determine the path of our Institute. Throughout the 70 years of the Institute’s development, CP has been reflecting two main objectives: as Immanuel Kant said, “the starry heavens above and the moral law within”. Our Institute proved that both tasks can be solved by young people who gathered around the campfire in the sixties, and today’s young people who ask questions to artificial intelligence. And, in my opinion, solving a moral task is no less important than the one that is written in our charter – exploring the fundamental laws of nature”.

Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Sergey Ryabkov read out a congratulatory address from Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. “Seven decades is a whole epoch in the history of world science. Over the years, the Institute has not only taken its rightful place among the leading scientific centres of the globe – it became a true symbol of fruitful international cooperation”, Sergey Ryabkov concluded.

Deputy Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mikhail Chudakov presented a video by IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi. In his speech, Rafael Grossi noted that the IAEA is practically the same age as JINR, and cooperation is underway in many areas, including the organization of schools and meetings on reactors and nuclear analytical methods, participation in the international Lise Meitner Programme and contribution to the formation of the International Nuclear Information System. Mikhail Chudakov thanked the Institute’s management for the reliable long-term cooperation of the organizations.

Congratulatory speeches were delivered by the leaders of the national academies of sciences and relevant ministries of Kazakhstan, Russia, and Serbia; Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Russian Federation of China, Mexico, and Mongolia; as well as the Plenipotentiaries of Armenia, Egypt, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam to JINR. Dubna Head Maxim Tikhonirov read out a congratulatory address from Moscow Region Governor Andrey Vorobyov.

The speakers highlighted the significance of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research on the global scientific landscape and its role in training personnel and advancing science and technology in the Member States and Partner Countries. Grigory Trubnikov presented each speaker with a 70th JINR Anniversary medal. The Institute’s employees received various awards from Member States’ representatives. A ceremony took place to award 14 Dubna educators who won the teacher grant of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research.

The event featured video clips about the Institute’s history and achievements, animated historical photographs from the JINR photo archive, as well as a laser animation show – a light installation revealing the stages of the Institute’s establishment, along with the development of the city shaped by its activities.

JINR employees and their families from 20 different countries became part of a unique musical event – a video clip for a legendary song Moscow Nights. The artists presented a reimagined version, sounding modern yet staying true to the composition’s core essence. The evening concluded with a classical music concert performed by the Orpheus Radio Symphony Orchestra. Among the performers were Merited Artists of the Russian Federation: conductor Sergey Kondrashev and pianist Ekaterina Mechetina.

In addition, The First Star: The Birth of a New Interaction – an exhibition of archival documents – opened at the Mir Cultural Centre, chronicling the Institute’s establishment in 1954–1956. On display are the most important scientific and technical documents from JINR’s first years; materials from state, departmental, institutional, and family archives, including declassified and never-before-presented items; as well as unique film and photo chronicles and rare audio recordings of the voices of the Joint Institute’s first leaders.

Guests had the opportunity to visit the JINR Main Facilities interactive exhibition, now located at the cultural centre. Every spectator could leave a memorable digital entry: two kiosks in the first floor’s foyer provided the opportunity to congratulate the Institute through an electronic book.