Sakharov, Andrei Dmitriyevich, << SAHK uh rawf, uhn DRYAY ih duh MYEE tryih yuh vyihch >> (1921-1989), was a Soviet physicist who gained prominence for his research on nuclear physics. His work on thermonuclear fusion, in which intense heat causes atomic nuclei to fuse (join together) and produce a tremendous amount of energy, helped scientists in the Soviet Union develop a hydrogen bomb from 1948 to 1953.
Sakharov became best known for his efforts to stop nuclear testing and to promote human rights and world peace. He received the 1975 Nobel Peace Prize for those efforts. Beginning in the late 1960’s, Sakharov and his wife, Yelena Bonner, repeatedly criticized the Soviet government, charging that it denied Soviet citizens basic human rights. In 1980, the Soviet authorities arrested Sakharov and exiled him from Moscow to Gorki (now Nizhniy Novgorod), an industrial center that was closed to foreigners. In 1986, Sakharov was released from exile and he returned to Moscow. In 1989, he was elected to the newly formed Soviet legislature called the Congress of People’s Deputies. He described his life as a scientist and his struggle against Soviet authority in his Memoirs (published in 1990, after his death).
In 1988, the European Parliament established the Andrei Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to honor individuals who fight for human rights and fundamental freedoms. The prize is awarded each year in Strasbourg, France. In 2006, the American Physical Society established the Andrei Sakharov Award. It is awarded to scientists who demonstrate outstanding leadership or achievement in upholding human rights. These organizations were inspired to create the awards by Sakharov’s courageous work on behalf of human rights at the cost of his own personal freedom.
Sakharov was born on May 21, 1921, in Moscow. He died on Dec. 14, 1989.
