earth science

Nikolay Sobolev

Nikolay Sobolev is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nikolay Sobolev rather than just read about it. In short: Nikolay Vladimirovich Sobolev (Russian: Никола́й Влади́мирович Со́болев; 28 May 1935 – 25 March 2022) was a Soviet and Russian mineralogist, petrologist, and geochemist who studied processes in the lithospheric mantle and was a member of Russian (USSR), European, US National, and Italian Academies of Sciences. Early life and education Sobolev was born in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) on 28 May 1935 in the family…

Key takeaways

Nikolay Sobolev belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nikolay Sobolev to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nikolay Sobolev from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nikolay Vladimirovich Sobolev (Russian: Никола́й Влади́мирович Со́болев; 28 May 1935 – 25 March 2022) was a Soviet and Russian mineralogist, petrologist, and geochemist who studied processes in the lithospheric mantle and was a member of Russian (USSR), European, US National, and Italian Academies of Sciences.

Early life and education Sobolev was born in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) on 28 May 1935 in the family of Vladimir Sobolev. He graduated with honours from the Faculty of Geology of Lviv State University (now Ivan Franko National University of Lviv) in 1958 and worked briefly at the university, including as head of its mineralogical museum.

Career From 1960, Sobolev worked in Novosibirsk within the Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences research system, starting at the Institute of Geology and Geophysics and later holding senior leadership roles. He was elected an Academician (full member) of the Soviet Academy of Sciences in 1990 (later the Russian Academy of Sciences). He served as director of the Institute of Mineralogy and Petrography (Siberian Branch) from 1990 to 2006, and subsequently continued research at the V. S. Sobolev Institute of Geology and Mineralogy (SB RAS) as a senior scientist/adviser. He defended a PhD thesis in 1963 and a Doctor of Science thesis in 1971, and later held a professorship (from 1985).

Research Sobolev's research focused on the mineralogy, petrology, and geochemistry of deep lithospheric environments, with particular emphasis on diamonds and their indicator minerals, kimberlites and related mantle-derived rocks, and high- to ultrahigh-pressure metamorphism. His work contributed to (i) mineralogical criteria for diamond potential in kimberlites and exploration approaches, and (ii) documentation and interpretation of microdiamonds and coesite-bearing mineral inclusions in metamorphic rocks of the Kokchetav Massif, used as evidence for ultrahigh-pressure conditions during crustal subduction and exhumation.

Editorial and professional service

Sobolev was editor-in-chief of the journal Geology and Geophysics for approximately 24 years (often reported as beginning in 1998). He also served in international scientific bodies, including as vice-president of the International Mineralogical Association (1990–1994).

Honours and recognition Sobolev was elected a corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences in 1981 and a full member (academician) in 1990. He received the Lenin Prize (1976) for a monograph series on metamorphic facies (as reported by institutional sources). He was awarded the IMA Medal of Excellence in Mineralogical Sciences (2013). In 2019 he received the Friedrich-Becke Medal of the Austrian Mineralogical Society (ÖMG). He was also reported as a recipient of the A. E. Fersman Prize of the Russian Academy of Sciences and an Alexander von Humboldt international award. Sobolev was a member of Academia Europaea and an international member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, member of Academy of Science in Rome (Accademia dei Lincei).

Selected works Sobolev, N. V. (2003). "An origin of microdiamonds in metamorphic rocks of the Kokchetav Massif, Northern Kazakhstan". Episodes. 26 (4): 290–294. doi:10.18814/epiiugs/2003/v26i4/004. Hwang, S. L.; Shen, P.; Chu, H.-T.; Yui, T.-F.; Liou, J. G.; Sobolev, N. V.; Zhang, R. Y.; Shatsky, V. S.; Zayachkovsky, A. A. (2004). "Kokchetavite: a new potassium-feldspar polymorph from the Kokchetav ultrahigh-pressure terrane". Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology. 148 (3): 380–389. Bibcode:2004CoMP..148..380H. doi:10.1007/s00410-004-0610-2. Dobretsov, N. L.; Shatsky, V. S.; Sobolev, N. V. (1995). "Comparison of the Kokchetav and Dabie Shan Metamorphic Complexes: Coesite- and Diamond-Bearing Rocks and UHP-HP Accretional-Collisional Events". International Geology Review. 37 (7): 636–656. Bibcode:1995IGRv...37..636D. doi:10.1080/00206819509465423. Claoué-Long, J. C.; Sobolev, N. V.; Shatsky, V. S.; Sobolev, A. V. (1991). "Zircon response to diamond-pressure metamorphism in the Kokchetav massif, USSR". Geology. 19 (7): 710–713. Bibcode:1991Geo....19..710C. doi:10.1130/0091-7613(1991)019<0710:ZRTDPM>2.3.CO;2. Sobolev, N. V.; Shatsky, V. S. (1990). "Diamond inclusions in garnets from metamorphic rocks: a new environment for diamond formation". Nature. 343 (6260): 742–746. Bibcode:1990Natur.343..742S. doi:10.1038/343742a0. Sobolev, N. V. (1977). Deep-seated inclusions in kimberlites and the problem of the composition of the upper mantle. American Geophysical Union. doi:10.1029/SP011. ISBN 0-87590-202-2.

References

External links "Accademia dei Lincei profile". Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Retrieved 1 January 2026. "Academia Europaea profile". ae-info.org. Retrieved 1 January 2026. "Institutional obituary (SB RAS)". V. S. Sobolev Institute of Geology and Mineralogy. Retrieved 1 January 2026.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nikolay Sobolev

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nikolay Sobolev claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nikolay Sobolev before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nikolay Sobolev ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nikolay Sobolev

In research: Nikolay Sobolev appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nikolay Sobolev in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nikolay Sobolev is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1935 births, 2022 deaths, Academic staff of the University of Lviv, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nikolay Sobolev outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Nikolay Sobolev” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Nikolay Sobolev in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nikolay Sobolev means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nikolay Sobolev out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nikolay Sobolev in simple terms?

Why does Nikolay Sobolev matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nikolay Sobolev?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nikolay Sobolev.