Andrei Sakharov: Soviet Physics, Nuclear Weapons, and Human Rights

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• Learn more about Andrei Sakharov, biographies, physicists, physics, Russian history, Soviet Union, technology, and world history.

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The American Institue of Physics has created this online exhibit Andrei Sakharov: Soviet Physics, Nuclear Weapons, and Human Rights as part of their mission to preserve and make known the history of modern physics. “Andrei Sakharov (1921-1989) was a Soviet physicist who became, in the words of the Nobel Peace Committee, a spokesman for the conscience of mankind. He was fascinated by fundamental physics and cosmology, but first he spent two decades designing nuclear weapons. He came to be regarded as the father of the Soviet hydrogen bomb, contributing perhaps more than anyone else to the military might of the USSR. Butgradually Sakharov became one of the regime’s most courageous critics, a defender of human rights and democracy. He could not be silenced, and helped bring down one of history’s most powerful dictatorships. This exhibit tells about Sakharov’s extraordinary life.”Examine the photos, primary resources, and audio recordings accompanying this biographical text that explores the major periods of Sakharov’s life:

• The Early Years: 1921-1944
• From Graduate Studies to a Bomb Design: 1945-1950
• The Hydrogen Bomb: 1950-1956
• The Dangers of Nuclear Testing: 1957-1963
• Cosmology and Social Responsibility: 1964-1968
• Reflections on Progress, Peaceful Coexistence, and Intellectual Freedom
• Human Rights Movement: 1969-1979
• Exile in Gorky: 1980-1986
• Struggle for Democracy: 1987-1989
• Sakharov on his Intellectual Evolution