Innokenti Gerasimov

Innokenti Petrovich Gerasimov (Герасимов, Иннокентий Петрович; 9 December 1905, Kostroma - 30 March 1985, Moscow) was a Soviet geographer and pedologist, professor, academician of the Soviet Academy of Sciences (1953).

Biography
He graduated from Leningrad State University (1926). Gerasimov participated in expeditions to Kazakhstan, Middle Asia, Western Siberia, on Ural, Far East and other. He traveled to Western Europe, India, China, Japan, Ceylon, Senegal, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Guinea, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, United States, Mexico, New Zealand, Australia.

Gerasimov also was known for his work in geomorphology, the study of the earth's surface relief.

As the director of the Institute of Geography since 1951, he directed research used in planning regional development projects and the building of towns and railroads.

A rare glimpse of the man can be found in a one and a half minute behind the scenes documentary featured as part of the 'Coming From The Movies Set' series of Soviet film promos. In this piece Gerasimov can be seen in Norilsk on the set of his film "Town Planners". It's a story of two young architects struggling to build a new town in the Polar Regions. The film stars Ivan Negonov as the director of an Iron & Steel Works, Anatoly Solonitsyn as architect Kolmykov, Lyubov Virolainen as architect Arkhipova; and can be found as an extra on the 2003 DVD release of Andrei Tarkovsky's 1974 film The Mirror.

In 1964 he was elected a Member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.

He was honored with an Order of Lenin and the State Prize of the USSR in 1973.

Books

 * Структурные черты рельефа земной поверхности на территории СССР и их происхождение, М., 1959;
 * Преобразование природы и развитие географической науки в СССР, М., 1967.

Literature

 * Маринич А. М. [и др.], Шестидесятилетие со дня рождения и сорокалетие научной деятельности академика И. П. Герасимова, «Изв. АН СССР. Серия географическая», 1965, в. 4, № 6;
 * Мещеряков Ю. А., Вклад академика И. П. Герасимова в геоморфологию, в кн.: Структурная и климатическая геоморфология, М., 1966;
 * Фридланд В. М., Исследования И. П. Герасимова в области почвоведения, в кн.: Генезис и география почв, М., 1966.
 * Sobisevich A. V., Snytko V. A. Some aspects of nature protection in the scientific heritage of academician Innokentiy Gerasimov // Acta Geographica Silesiana. 2018. Vol. 29. # 1. P. 55–60.