The Institute of Geology of the Komi Science Centre, Ural Division, Russian Academy of Sciences, was established in 1958 on the basis of the Department of Geology of the Komi Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences . In turn, the Department of Geology was formed in 1944 under the initiative of the outstanding researcher of geology of the European North, professor А . А . С hernov within the frames of the organized in 1939 Syktyvkar group о f the Northern Base о f the Academy о f Sciences of the USSR.

The Institute staff numbers 320 workers, among whom one Academician and one C orresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 25 Doctors and 70 Candidates of S cience.

There are three departments: the Department of Regional Geology, comprising four laboratories (Laboratories of Petrography, Stratigraphy, Cenozoic Geology and Regional Geology), the Department of Mineralogy with four large laboratories (Regional Mineralogy, Experimental Mineralogy, Structural and Morphologic Crystallography, Mineralogy of Diamonds), and the Department of Geology of Fossil Fuels, including five laboratories (Geology of Oil- and Gas-bearing Basins, Geology of Oil and Gas Fields, Geoinformatics, Organic Geochemistry, Geophysical observatory "Syktyvkar"). Five research directions are being developed by independent laboratories: the Laboratory of Lithology and Geochemistry of Sedimentary Formations, the Laboratory of Palaeontology, the Laboratory of Mineral Technologies, the Laboratory of Mineral Raw Resources, the Laboratory of Isotopic Chemistry.

The Museum of Geology after A.A. Chernov carries out research work, forms scientific and educational collections, provides access to its collections and offers excursions.

Experimental о bservations are provided b у the Science Research Automation team о n a high scientific-technical level. The operative publication of the received research results is being carried out in the publishing department "Geoprint" on its own polygraphic base, while their popularization and representation to the broad audience of readers – by means of a monthly issued "Journal of the Institute of Geology". At the Institute five regional shared centres with unique equipment are organized . The Institute keeps working to prepare new research specialists. The Institute has established the Chair of Geology at Syktyvkar State University, staffed with highly qualified scientists from the Institute. The post-graduate and post-doctorate courses and two Boards for the Defence of Dissertations for a Doctor's and Candidate's Degree are effectively working.

The basic directions of research

•  studying the composition, structure and evolution of the lithosphere of the Timan-North Urals region, evolution of geological processes;

•  revelation of mineral resources potential of the European Northeast o f Russia and the north of Urals, solution of the problem of their rational development;

•  development of fundamental problems of geology, mineralogy, study of processes, mechanisms and evolution of mineral formation; development of scientific foundations of mineral synthesis and crystal-based technologies;

•  theoretical and experimental modelling of geological and geochemical processes relevant to the fundamental problems of geology and ore genesis.

Apart from traditional fields of research, new scientific directions such as genetic-information mineralogy, regional geochemistry, topomineralogy of ore-bearing areas, vitamineralogy, nanomineralogy, evolution of crystal-forming processes, sequence stratigraphy, mineralogical stratigraphy, isotopic stratigraphy, petrology of natural fluidized-explosive systems, etc. are being developed.

The major results of researches

The Institute has played a determining role in studying the geological structure and the history of geological development of the northeast of the European part of Russia, the north of Urals, the islands of Vaigach and Novaya Zemlya. Essential results are obtained in geotectonics, stratigraphy and lithology, mineralogy, geochemistry and petrography, in studying the conditions of formation and occurrences of the major oil- and gas-bearing complexes, coal-bearing and ore formations that has provided a reliable geological foundation for prospecting the entire range of mineral resources in this vast territory.

The Institute has lately made a significant breakthrough in various areas of geology.

A new large-scale branch of economy of the Republic of Komi – mining involving extraction of bauxites, barites, manganese, and other valuable minerals has been created.

Uniform heterogeneous Pechora-Barents Sea oil- and gas-bearing basin including continental and water parts with distinctive features of oil- and gas-bearing balance has been singled out within the northeastern part of the European Platform. The richest in hyrdocarbonic raw material Pechora-Barents Sea region may be put in one line with such largest oil-and-gas-bearing regions as West-Siberia, Persian Gulf etc.

The geological model of a new perspective Mesen oil- and gas- basin has been determined, elaborated and justified from the scientific standpoint. The representatives of the oil and gas producing companies have made the presentation of the basin. The program on oil and gas prospecting work has been suggested.

On the basis of investigations of mineral substance and the processes of mineral-formation at nano-level an original quataron theory on the mechanisms of condensation and crystallization, nature of the phase transformations has been developed, its applicability to many natural objects is shown .

The comparative analysis of the origin of mineral and biological systems has been made; a new conception of mineral organismobiosis has been developed. Essentially new results on the biomineral- formation processes, the role of minerals in the origin of life and influence of mineralogical factors on biocenology have been obtained. On the basis of these researches new directions in mineralogical science – vita mineralogy, mineralogy of life have been created.