The Baldin International Seminar on Problems of High-energy Physics “Relativistic Nuclear Physics and Quantum Chromodynamics” has started today at JINR. It is the 25th anniversary seminar, which is taking place within the programme of the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development. JINR with the support of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics organized the event.

JINR Vice-Director Vladimir Kekelidze opened the seminar, “The previous Baldin seminar was held five years ago due to the pandemic and other factors. During this time, science was developing. Very interesting results were achieved. Our flagship NICA Project has made great progress, almost the entire injection complex is working at full capacity. It is significant that this seminar is being held in the UNESCO Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development. Held this year with the support of the IUPAP committee, the seminar has been and remains important for the scientific community.”

Together with JINR scientists, the seminar brought together participants from ten countries: Russia, Belarus, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Bulgaria, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Slovakia, China. Approximately half of the participants, including the speakers, are young scientists and specialists. For them, the Baldin seminar provides an excellent opportunity to take part in scientific discussions, establish scientific contacts with colleagues from other scientific centres. There are students from Dubna University among the speakers and listeners.

As usual, during the Baldin autumn’s week, the latest results obtained at the largest facilities from around the world are being presented. The participants will discuss current advances in the development of theoretical models and the results of applied research using technologies and methods developed in research in high energy physics and nuclear physics. A number of reports will be devoted to the status of the implementation of the NICA Megascience Project, as well as the results obtained in experiments at the LHC at CERN.

“The anniversary seminar was to be held in 2020, but was postponed due to the pandemic. Despite the sanctions, it was decided to hold the seminar this year. The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) supported the decision,” Alexander Malakhov, Chairman of the Seminar Organizing Committee, Head of the VBLHEP JINR Scientific and Experimental Department of Heavy Ion Physics, commented on the event. He also highlighted that the seminar was one of the events of the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development (IYBSSD 2022/23).

In addition, the seminar is timed to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the creation of the Electrophysical Laboratory of the USSR Academy of Sciences (EFLAN), on the basis of which the Laboratory of High Energy Physics at JINR was established in 1956. In addition, this year marks the milestone 30 years anniversary of the launch of the Nuclotron.

A special section of the seminar is dedicated to the memory of Professor Valery Burov (1949 – 2022), one of the permanent organizers of the Baldin autumn since 1969. “The seminar is being held for the first time without Professor Burov. Almost from the very beginning, he was one of the organizers of this seminar. First as a scientific secretary, then as a co–chairman of the organizing committee. We really miss him right now. He was a great scientist and a good organizer. Scientists who knew Valery Burov well and his students will speak at a special section of the seminar,” Alexander Malakhov said.

The working language of the seminar is English. The event will finish on 23 September 2023.