At the opening of the meeting, KarRC RAS CEO Olga Bakhmet presented a Certificate of Honor from the Russian Academy of Sciences for years of fruitful work and great contribution to the advancement of Russian science to Svetlana Chazhengina, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Geology KarRC RAS.
The first talk was given by Alexandra Stepanova, Leading Researcher at the Institute of Geology KarRC RAS. She reported on the latest results on the composition and age of Jatulian basalts in the Karelian Craton. These findings are significant both globally, providing new insights into the early Earth's history, and regionally, for predictive mineral exploration
Alexandra Stepanova, Leading Researcher, Institute of Geology KarRC RAS
Basalt is an igneous rock formed as a result of volcanic eruptions. The Jatulian is a stratigraphic unit (series) of the Middle Paleoproterozoic, its rocks formed 2.3–2.05 billion years ago. During this period, the planet underwent dramatic changes, including a sharp increase in oxygen content, a transition from anaerobic metabolism in early bacteria to aerobic metabolism, and an increase in biota volume. Evidence of these processes is preserved in ancient sedimentary rocks on the planet's Precambrian shields.
The most extensive event of this period is a carbon anomaly (a sharp enrichment of carbonate rocks in heavy carbon isotope), called the Lomagundi–Jatuli event.
– It is thought to have occurred 2.2–2.0 billion years ago, but the exact age, duration, synchrony of this event across different shields, and its association with the development of organic life on Earth remain subjects of scientific debate. Some researchers assume the event was of global nature, while others view it as a manifestation of regional processes, – related Alexandra Stepanova.
The main argument in these debates is precise dating of the rocks. However, it is quite a challenge: many ancient rocks have undergone heavy secondary transformation, losing the primary minerals typically used for dating.
In a project project supported by the Russian Science Foundation (grant No. 23-17-00260-P, led by A.V. Samsonov), the scientists studied the volcanic-sedimentary deposits of the Karelian Craton’s Segozero formation. The Jatulian rocks exposed in its section were examined using a suite of methods, including detailed documentation of the profile, petrographic, geochemical, and isotopic analyses. The application of traditional geochronological methods proved difficult here due to the aforementioned problems, but the geologists used a new technique of discrete-step chemical abrasion of baddeleyite–zircon aggregates to obtain accurate datings.
– This method is particularly effective in dating rocks that have undergone low-temperature metamorphism, as it enables the isolation and analysis of preserved fragments of primary minerals, – noted Alexandra Stepanova.
As a result, the age of Jatulian basalts was determined, and the Precambrian chronostratigraphic timeline was refined in terms of the Paleoproterozoic history of the Fennoscandian Shield (within the Jatulian: 2.22 Ga for the Yangozero/Medvezhyegorsk formation interface, and 2.13 Ga for the Yangozero/Tulomozero interface). Also, the maximum age of accumulation of carbonate rocks with an abnormally heavy carbon isotopic composition in the Tulomozero formation was determined as 2.13 Ga.
– These results point to synchronous manifestation of the Lomagundi–Jatuli carbon isotope anomaly on the Fennoscandian and other shields of the world, providing evidence in favor of the global-scale manifestation of this event, – summarized Alexandra Stepanova.
Dr. Alexander Slabunov, KarRC RAS Deputy Director General
The second talk was given by Natalia Kalinkina, Leading Researcher at the Hydrobiology Laboratory of the Northern Water Problems Institute KarRC RAS. The Doctor of Biological Sciences noted that Lake Onego, one of the largest European lakes, is experiencing the impact of climate change, human pressure, and biological invasions. On the one hand, the discharge of pollutants into the lake with municipal and industrial wastewater has decreased over the past two decades. On the other hand, the influence of climate change has increased (the surface water temperature in the littoral zone has risen by 2–3 degrees Celsius) – it has become commensurate with the human impact.
Natalia Kalinkina, Leading Researcher, Hydrobiology Laboratory, Northern Water Problems Institute KarRC RAS
Speaking of biological invasions, scientists have observed range expansion in an alien crustacean – Baikalian amphipod. Its introduction and mass propagation in the lake’s littoral has improved the food resources for fishes of the Percidae family.
Natalya Belkina, Head of Sediment Research Group, Northern Water Problems Institute KarRC RAS
The scientist elaborated on three major regions of the lake. The Central region of Lake Onego has retained high water quality and an oligotrophic state. Scientists have noted a shift in the phenological phases of phytoplankton to earlier dates due to climate change.
In Petrozavodsk Bay, there is an ongoing decline in summer phytoplankton and the abundance of deep-water macrozoobenthos – benthic organisms. This is explained by a reduction in anthropogenic load, as well as brownification of the bay, including increased levels of iron and carbon dioxide. In Kondopoga Bay, on the contrary, anthropogenic pressure has accelerated eutrophication: phosphorus content, chlorophyll a concentration, and phytoplankton biomass are rising.
– To prevent irreversible transformation of the Lake Onego ecosystem, which is a strategic source of fresh water, it is crucial to conduct continuous scientific monitoring, including surveys from aboard a research vessel, – emphasized Natalia Kalinkina.
The third presentation made at the Academic Council meeting dealt with commercial naming in Karelia. Its authors are Svetlana Nagurnaya and Ekaterina Zakharova, Senior Researchers at the Linguistics Section of the Institute of Linguistics, Literature and History KarRC RAS.
Naming is the process of creating proper names for branding. Scientists note that SME development in Karelia entails a rise in the number of commercial names is increasing, including those in Balto-Finnic languages.
To identify region-specific pattern in naming practices, the linguists have analyzed hundreds of contemporary commercial names that convey the ethnic, historical, cultural, and geographical identity of Karelia.
Among the thematic groups of commercial names that convey regional identity, the scientists highlight names associated with the perception of the environment, natural phenomena, and symbols of the north. In these names, Karelia is presented as a land of lakes (Ozyora [lakes], Lambushka [forest lakelet], Järvi [Fin. lake]), a remote territory, wilderness (Medvezhy Ugol [bear corner/backwoods], Glukhoman’ [middle of nowhere], Tikhiy Bereg [quiet shore]), a land of pristine nature (Yagel’ [reindeer moss], Khvoya [conifer needles], Mokh [Moss]), and a locus of energy and strength (Elinvoima, Yagody Zhizni [berries of life]).
Particular attention is required for names created in Karelian, Veps, and Finnish, or containing individual Balto-Finnic words or graphemes. Examining this name stratum, linguists discovered numerous fallacies in rendering sounds strange to the Russian ear and words with complex structure, and misspelling of place names and geographical terms.
– There is currently no control or supervision of the naming activity in this sphere, and its outputs have not yet been the subject of socio-onomastic research. In order to preserve regional cultural specificity, and taking into account sociological research findings, the authors of the study conclude that emerging names based on Balto-Finnic language material are to be put to professional linguistic review.
According to the linguists, after the topic has been presented to the public and covered by media, they have been increasingly contacted by entrepreneurs requesting advice on proper naming; however, this is not enough. The issue needs to be addressed by regional decision-makers.
Wrapping up the scientific agenda, KarRC RAS CEO, RAS Corr. Fellow Olga Bakhmet acknowledged the relevance and importance of all the studies, wished her colleagues success in their continuation, and thanked all participants for the active discussion of the presentations.
During the discussion of administrative matters, Olga Bakhmet announced that the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation has extended her term as the KarRC RAS Director General, and that the related organizational actions are forthcoming.
