Brekhovskikh Leonid Maximovich

Born May 6, 1917 in the village Strunkin Vilegodsky district of the Arkhangelsk region, in a large peasant family. Father - Brekhovskikh Maxim V. (1871 g. born.). Mother - Brekhovskikh Nadezhda (1875. born.). Wife - Lydia Popova Andreyevna (1918 g.rozhd.). Daughters Brekhovskikh Galina (1944 g.rozhd.) Brekhovskikh Vera L. (1951 g.rozhd.). Son - Brekhovskikh Andrey (1953 g.rozhd.).

Leonid Brekhovskikh was the eleventh child in the family. Until adulthood grown six brothers and a sister. They lived in abject poverty. Father and mother counted every penny, and a lot of hard work. With 7-8 years to the village to work and taught the children. In 8 years, they have already reaped corn, raked hay on haymaking, have done many other works. But most often they had to graze cattle in the forest - horses, cows, sheep. At this time, many village children amused "smoking" - stripped leaves from trees, dried it on the fire, then crushed and wrapped cigarettes. Once, in this part and Lenya. Smoked some leaves so that all his life has lost the desire for smoking.

Like most farmers of that time the parents were illiterate, Leonid Maximovich. My father was not a supporter of education, believing that the success of the farm enough skill and diligence. But my mother insisted that the children went to school. Sister Luba graduated from Grade 2: in the village was thought that a girl need not learn - it does not need a charter. The brothers were more fortunate. All of them received secondary education and senior Theodosius entered the famous educational institution - the Mining Institute in Leningrad.

In 1929, Leonid Brekhovskikh graduated from a 4-year school. Along with school friend, Sasha Vorontsov, they hoped to learn more - in 5 th grade in the village of Ilyinsk, which is 10 kilometers from the village. But in school the boys did not have, because their parents refused to engage in farm. Almost a year Lenya worked peasant labor and that somehow, and something to do, and the thirst for learning was, became self-study German language textbook, found accidentally in the attic.

. In the late summer of 1930 received a letter from his brother, Theodosius, who after graduation worked as an engineer at a copper-smelting plant in the city Krasnouralsk
. He called Lenya to a study. Father was against it: "Where are you such a weakling in 13 years, never visited, you'll go somewhere in the Urals". But mother, Bright her memory, again insisted: "He wants to learn - let him go". And Leonid set off ...

In 1934, Leonid Krasnouralsk Brekhovskikh graduated from an eight-year, and after the summer training courses in the same year he entered the Physics and Mathematics Department of the Perm State University. He graduated with honors in 1939 and enrolled in graduate school Physics Institute named P.N. Lebedev, USSR Academy of Sciences, where in October 1941 he defended his thesis on the topic: "X-ray scattering in crystals".

The war changed the profile of scientific interest Leonid Maximovich. He begins work as a group member of the Academy of Sciences NN. Andreev on the creation of methods and means of protecting ships from the German acoustic mines.

At the end of 40's - early 50-ies have the most productive period of life LM. Brekhovskikh as academics. In these years he was offered, in particular, the method of solving the problem of scattering of waves by rough surfaces with large compared with the length of the sound (or electromagnetic) wave irregularities - the so-called "approximation of the tangent plane". This method with minor changes and is still used in solving problems of this kind.

In 1945, Leonid Maksimovic, analyzing the results of experiments L.D. Rosenberg and NI. Sigachyov conducted in the Sea of Japan together with other specialists from the Navy, discovered the phenomenon of the underwater sound channel, which has been thoroughly studied in the subsequent theoretical and field research scientist. These studies were fundamental to the whole development of underwater acoustics, both in terms of the theory of wave propagation in the ocean, and practical applications.

In 1947, LM. Brekhovskikh defended his doctoral thesis on the theory of sound and electromagnetic waves in layered media. In 1948, for a series of works set out in his dissertation, his prize is awarded Academician N.D. Papaleksi.

In 1951, for the discovery of the underwater sound channel him and others to work (L.D. Rosenberg, NI. Sigachyov, B.I. Charles) is awarded the Stalin Prize of I degree.

In 1953, LM. Brekhovskikh claimed the rank of professor and was elected a corresponding member of Academy of Sciences.

During these years he developed the theory of propagation of radio and sound waves in layered media. Written in his monograph "Waves in Layered Media" (1957) was translated into several foreign languages and has a very high rating in the scientific world by quoting.

. Apart from purely scientific activity, Leonid Maximovich took hold of the great scientific-organizational work
. He was commissioned to create the Academy of Sciences of the USSR on the basis of the Acoustics Laboratory of FIAN, led by NN. Andreyev, a new research institute - Acoustics Institute, USSR Academy of Sciences. LM. Brekhovskikh became the first director of the Institute (1954-1962).

There comes a new stage in life Brekhovskikh - he becomes a scientist and organizer of science. Around it is formed school - young scientists, graduate students, students. Establish scientific contacts with foreign scientists from China, USA, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Belgium, Japan. To institute built research vessels "Sergei Vavilov" and "Peter Swan, specially equipped for acoustic work in the ocean. Leonid Maximovich head first ocean expedition to these courts.

Activities LM. Brekhovskikh gained recognition in national and international scientific community. In 1963-1969 years he - a member of the International Commission of acoustic, in 1964-1967 years - a member of the Bureau of the International Geophysical Association of physical oceanography. For many years, led Oceanographic Commission (later - the Scientific Council on the oceans) at the Presidium of the USSR. In the years 1966-1969 - Chairman of the Scientific Council on Acoustics of the USSR, . in 1968 elected a member of the Academy of Sciences, . and in 1969 became an academician-secretary of the Department of Oceanology, . atmospheric physics and geography of the USSR, . irremovably which led to the end of 1991,
. In 1970, for work in the field of special shipbuilding he received the Lenin Prize.

. In the same year was headed by Leonid Maximovich lead in conducting the experiment hydro "Polygon-70" in the Atlantic Ocean on the research vessel "Akademik Kurchatov", . as a result of which was made one of the biggest discoveries of the twentieth century in geosciences - open "synoptic eddies in the ocean,
. This discovery has radically changed the existing ideas about the dynamics of ocean waters. Continuation of work on this problem was the Soviet-American experiment POLIMODE (1977-1979)

. During these years, continue to strengthen contacts Leonid Maximovich with foreign scientists - lecturing in China and the U.S., . Internships foreign scientists at the Acoustics Institute, . participation in international conferences and congresses (Belgium, . Japan, . France and others),
. In 1977 Brekhovskikh elected a member of the Polish Academy of Sciences. In 1978 he awarded the highest international award for scientists and acoustics - Big Gold Medal of the Institute of Acoustics Rayleigh UK. Since 1978, he - a member of the editorial board of international journals "Acta Oceanological" and "Wave Motion". In 1986 he was awarded International Prize A.P. Karpinski, established by Alfred Topfer Foundation (Hamburg, Germany) for outstanding achievements of scientists in the fields of science, of particular importance for the future of mankind. In 1991, Leonid Maximovich elected a foreign member of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA. In 1997 he was awarded a medal in. Munk. Since 1999, he - Honorary Member of the American Acoustical Society.

In 1980, LM. Brekhovskikh organizes and until 1992 headed the Institute of Oceanology behalf PP. Shirshov Sciences Division of Ocean Acoustics. As a result, there emerged another center, which develops closest to him scientific subjects - study of sound propagation in the ocean. Now LM. Brekhovskikh - Adviser of the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences of Russia, and concurrently chief researcher at the Institute of Oceanology behalf PP. Shirshov Sciences

. Over the years of research Leonid Maximovich participated as an officer or supervisor in 15 oceanographic expeditions on research vessels: "Serey Vavilov", . Peter Lebedev ", . "Akademik Kurchatov", . "Akademik Mstislav Keldysh", . Akademik Sergey Vavilov ", . "Akademik Ioffe", . whose main task was to study the propagation and scattering of sound in the ocean.,

. The special quality of Academician LM
. Brekhovskikh - training of researchers. To this end, they organized internships for students and graduate students - future researchers Ocean - ships Institute of Acoustics and Institute of Oceanology RAS. Of the students Leonid Maximovich more than a dozen scientists became doctors and a few dozen - candidates. He is constantly engaged in pedagogical work: long lectured to students of Physics and Technology, and then the Physics Department of Moscow State University named M.V. University. From 1975 to 1998, Leonid Maximovich headed the Department of Physics Hydrospace "the Moscow Physical-Technical Institute. For many years under his leadership operates a joint seminar sections of ocean acoustics Institute of Acoustics and Institute of Oceanology RAS, which discusses the results of new theoretical and experimental research in the field of ocean acoustics.

Brekhovskikh - by more than 200 publications on various aspects of acoustics and oceanography, including the monograph "Waves in Layered Media (1 st edition - 1957, 2 nd edition - 1980), translated into English and Chinese. In 1974 he co-authored with his colleagues he published a monograph "Ocean Acoustics", awarded in 1976, the USSR State Prize. In 1982, together with YU.P. Lysanova wrote a monograph "Theoretical Foundations of ocean acoustics," and together with VV. Goncharov - "Introduction to Mechanics of Continua". In recent years he published (jointly with his pupil OA. Godin) monograph "Acoustics of layered media" (Nauka, Moscow, 1989), which has been translated and published in English. In 1987 he published a popular science book LM. Brekhovskikh Ocean and the man. Present and Future "(Nauka, Moscow, 1987).

For great merits in the development of national science and science education in 1987, Leonid Maximovich Brekhovskikh awarded the title Hero of Socialist Labor. He was awarded three Orders of Lenin (1971, 1975, 1987), Order of Red Banner of Labor (1963), Order of Merit to the Fatherland "III degree (1997), many medals.

At eighty-three years of Leonid Maximovich remains an active organizer of science. He leads Russia (RFBR) and foreign (INTAS, CRDF) research grants devoted to different approaches to remote acoustic sensing of the ocean (ocean acoustic tomography).

His hobbies are gymnastics on the system "Yoga", loves to travel (especially by sea), preferred classical music.

Lives and works in Moscow.