Valentin Ivanovich Ulomov (1933 – 2017)

Principal researcher of the Laboratory of Seismic Hazard of the Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences, suddenly passed away on June 6th, 2017. He was a wonderful person, an outstanding seismologist and a wise leader. He had exceptional organizational skills, ability to communicate with many specialists, and was a stunning speaker.

Valentin Ulomov was a corresponding member of AS of the Uzbek SSR, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, State prize winner of the Russian Federation (RF) and the Uzbek SSR in science and technology. He was born on January 7th, 1933 in Tashkent in a family of teachers. In 1955, he graduated from the Central Asian Polytechnic Institute (Tashkent). His academic career began in 1955 at the Geophysical Institute of AS USSR (from 1956 -- Institute of Physics of the Earth) as research assistant. In 1959, a young active scientist, he was asked to lead the Tashkent seismic station. In 1960 in this position, he was transferred from IPE to the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences. During the infamous Tashkent earthquake in 1966, it was Valentin Ulomov who provided people with the latest news about the progress of seismic process. In 1990, he returned to IPE in Moscow, formed there the Laboratory of Continental Seismicity, became its head and headed the work on the creation of the new map of the General seismic zoning of Russia.

The academic career of V. Ulomov was quite successful. He defended his Master's thesis (1964) and doctoral thesis (1974) at the Institute of Physics of the Earth (Moscow). In 1964, he initiated the creation of the Center of Seismic Observations of Central Asia and Kazakhstan in Tashkent and was its head for 15 years, in 1966 renamed the Institute of Seismology, AS Uzbekistan. In 1984, he was elected as a corresponding member of the Uzbek Academy of Sciences. His fields of research were fundamental and applied seismology, structure and dynamics of the lithosphere, physics of the earthquake source and prediction, global and regional seismicity, seismic regionalization and seismic zoning. In 1997, a set of maps of the General Seismic Zoning of Northern Eurasia -- GSZ-97 was created under Ulomov's leadership using new methodological principals.
In 2002, the maps of GSZ-97 were awarded the State Prize of the RF in science and technology. In the 1990s, V. Ulomov actively participated in the Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Program (GSHAP) as a project coordinator of Northern Eurasia.

The scientific heritage of V. Ulomov is extensive. He authored more than 400 scientific monographs, articles, inventions. He discovered previously unknown natural phenomenon of predicative nature -- the radon emission before earthquakes. In 2017, V. Ulomov took an active participation in writing articles for the Great Russian Encyclopedia and the National Atlas of the Arctic. Valentin Ulomov worked hard and productively, sometimes to the detriment of his health. He died as a soldier, on duty. A few hours before his death he was actively exchanging emails with his colleagues. He passed away a coryphaeus of science and his loss, unfortunately, is irreplaceable.

Valentin Ulomov was a man of big heart. His heritage is priceless. It is enough to look at the materials that are generously posted on his personal website --http://seismos-u.ifz.ru. The website was entirely created by V. Ulomov and performs an educational and historical-biographical function. It is well-deserved popular not only among colleagues-seismologists, but also among construction workers, graduates, students and school children. Valentin was an outstanding draftsman. He painted oil portraits, nature, still lifes, and made pencil sketches.

The bright memory of Valentin Ivanovich Ulomov will forever remain in the hearts of those who had the opportunity to work, be friends and meet him.

Alexey Zavyalov
Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth, Russian Academy of Sciences