A bioclimatic index of physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) was calculated based on the human energy balance model and a standard set of meteorological data for Crimea, thus allowing estimating thermal comfort and possible risks to human health. Spatiotemporal changes of the indicator were analyzed comprehensively.

Climate changes were analyzed for the period 1950–2020 at 22 meteorological stations in Crimea using ERA5 reanalysis data, which were interpolated to observation points and evaluated as for the quality of acquired data series. The intra-annual distribution of PET values was studied, trends in value changes were identified, and the variability of days with extreme PET values for each month was analyzed. The trends of the most significant and pronounced increase of PET were revealed for particular months, mainly in the winterspring period. In summer months, the increasing probability of periods with extremely hot weather events is noted. The results of the study could be effectively used in the bioclimatic zoning of Crimea, as well as in the development of resort and tourism industry and other recreation activities. 

The study deals with the analysis of turbulent heat flux for several sites in the Baltic Sea (D6 platform, Arkona station and Darss Sill station) using various calculation methods. Sensible and latent heat fluxes were calculated using the aerodynamic method, as well as the COARE algorithm with different parameterizations. The calculations were based on data from weather stations, reanalysis, modeling, and measurement of wind wave parameters, as well as measurements of the anchored thermistor chain on the D6 IROP. The study covers the period from January to December 2016. As a result, it was found that when using the COARE method with Charnok parameterization, with constant coefficients of heat and moisture exchange (Constant method), the amount of sensible heat flux increases by 15%, and that of latent heat by 6% as compared to the aerodynamic method. The greatest differences in the flux values calculated by different methods are observed during severe storms with wave heights of more than 3 m and can exceed 50 W/m2.

The proportions of daily, synoptic, and seasonal variability, as well as the harmonic parameters of the daily and annual course, were estimated based on the dispersion and harmonic analysis of the heat flux series. 

The study was carried out within the Oka River catchment area (245 thousand km2 ). The catchment area is located in the European part of the Russian Federation and belongs to the Volga River basin. Based on the analysis of remote sensing data, the dynamics of soil production processes and the structure of land use within the basin are considered. Natural complex of the Oka River basin is a complicated mosaic of different landscapes, each having a diverse combination of geomorphologic and soil-vegetation complexes. To assess the state of landscapes, the catchment basins of tributaries, which are completely included in each specific landscape, are identified as key areas and the land use structure is described for each of them. According to Modis primary productivity – v 6.1 data and using the ArcGIS 10.8 software, phytoproductivity indicators (in carbon units) were calculated for each basin for the peak of the growing season (mid-July) during 2000–2015. The organic carbon reserve of the soil in the Oka River basin was evaluated. The trend of the dynamics of net and gross primary production and the reserve of organic carbon of soils is analyzed for the key river basins of the Oka River catchment area located in different landscape provinces. It has been established that the periods of production increase and decrease in different landscapes generally coincide, however, the scope of these changes and the stability of productivity indicators differ. It is shown that the size and structure of land use significantly affect the indicators of phytoproduction of landscapes. The main trends in the dynamics of net primary production in small river basins and the whole Oka River basin have been identified. It is shown that several levels of assessment, depending on the objectives of the study, are necessary for the integral assessment of extensive river basins. The first level is the assessment of the parameters for the functioning of the whole basin. The second level is the analysis of imbedded landscapes and basins, which makes it possible to take into account multidirectional processes within an integral water catchment system. In this case, we propose to consider the key areas which are smaller representative river basins. 

The paper presents the results of a palaeogeographic study based on facies-lithological, malacofaunal, and radiocarbon analyses of cores from three boreholes from the Black Sea shelf, 12 km southeast of the Zhelezny Rog Cape. The findings confirm the existence of the Surozh transgressive basin in the Late Pleistocene history of the Black Sea. Coarse-grained sand and shell deposits associated with the Surozh coastal facies were identified at varying depths, ranging from 9,0–6,0 to 5,2–4,2 m, at the absolute elevations between –26 and –30 m. The malacofaunal assemblage includes euryhaline marine, brackish, and freshwater species, apparently inherited from the final phase of the Karangatian transgression basin, which was influenced by the inflow of Hyrcanian waters of the Caspian Sea. This composition indicates a markedly freshened marine basin, with salinity levels not exceeding 12‰. Radiocarbon dating places the accumulation of the Surozh deposits between approximately 43 and 32 kaBP, corresponding to the interstadial warming of Marine Isotope Stage 3 (MIS3). The Surozh transgression appears to occur synchronously with the Early Khvalynian transgression of the Caspian Sea. However, no definitive evidence currently supports the existence of a Khvalynian Strait connecting the two basins during that time. 

Aristolochiaceae s.l., included in the order Piperales, consists of 8 genera (Asarum, Saruma, Aristolochia, Thottea, Pararistolochia, Hydnora, Prosopanche and Lactoris) and more than 700 species. [Plants…, 2022]. The geography of distribution and the history of the dispersal of this family are of great scientific interest in many terms, because species of this family live in different parts of the continents, thus forming disjunctions in their distribution areas. The range of the family covers the western and eastern coasts of America, North and Central Africa, North-East Australia, South-East and East Asia, Siberia and the most of Europe. During the work, the morphological, biological and ecological characteristics of the representatives of the family were studied. The analysis of the molecular genetic and morphological data of selected Aristolochiaceae s.l. taxa was carried out on the basis of the results of our own researches. We compared the results of the reconstruction of the probable distribution tracks with the available paleobotanical materials. The result of our work was the reconstruction of possible routes of settlement and methods of distribution Aristolochiaceae s.l. representatives, based on complex molecular-genetic and morphological data. 

The current international situation is volatile, and the global economic and trade landscape is being profoundly affected by geopolitical conflicts, climate change and emerging technological revolutions. However, the Belt and Road Initiative and the Eurasian integration are promoting a steady rise in the total volume of bilateral trade between Russia and China. Economic and trade interaction between the two countries is an important pillar of the China-Russia strategic partnership. But bilateral trade accounts for only a relatively low proportion of China’s foreign trade volume, and there are still problems, e.g. low added value of products. A number of indices are applied to analyze the extent of bilateral trade between China and Russia over the past two decades, as well as its competitiveness and complementarity. The results of calculations show that China has a strong competitive advantage in the export of labor-intensive goods, while a strong competitive advantage of Russia is the export of primary goods. The bilateral trade volume between China and Russia has shown vigorous growth, accounting for an increasing share of Russia’s total foreign trade, while its share of China’s total foreign trade has just slightly increased. Both sides still have high potential for further promoting of economic and trade cooperation. 

The paper analyzes the ways of interpreting social reality and producing symbolic resources in Moscow by changing the system of streetnames (hodonyms) which are the most widespread and used class of urban toponyms. Hodonyms are considered as an important and the most dynamic element of the political landscape of a city. The study is based on geoinformation analysis of the database created by selecting streetnames with political connotations from the Moscow hodonyms of the portal “Electronic Moscow”. These are associated with: 1) the communist regime and its realities; 2) cultural and art persons; 3) economic-geographical objects; 4) physical-geographical objects. Spatial patterns of naming Moscow streets were studied. The use of key technologies of (re)naming streets in the capital is analyzed, including “cleansing”, re-establishment, restitution and promotion. The first wave of renaming after the 1917 revolution led to a significant change in the political and cultural landscape of the city by changing more than 65% of the names, primarily those associated with royal dynasties, noble and merchant families, monasteries and churches. The second wave, i. e. the post-Soviet restitution, affected only about 5% of streets, mainly located in the center. Therefore, the modern system of Moscow street names is to a high degree inherited from the Soviet era and the naming principles adopted then. More than 30% of hodonyms are still directly related to the communist regime and its realities. According to the structure of streetnames, Moscow appears first of all as a center of historical Russia, the former Moscow principality, and then the province and region. The capital preserves the tradition of clustering hodonyms, laid down in pre-revolutionary times. There are clusters associated with places of violent clashes during revolutionary periods, clusters associated with regions of the country located towards the corresponding corners of the earth, and clusters associated with the location of organizations associated with international activities, foreign states and their representatives. The mirror of hodonyms reflects the image of Moscow as a capital of Russia, collecting the surrounding territories, a former center of the great empire and macroregion of the world, as well as a large multifunctional agglomeration and a world city. 

The paper addresses the problem of universalizing the characteristics of Arctic cities and questions the possibility of identifying uniform patterns in their demographic dynamics. The analysis is based on a comparison of census data for more than 100 cities in Russia and Canada since the mid-20th century. The authors demonstrate that the official definition of the Arctic Zone as an administrative category does not reflect the real differences between cities. The authors show that the official definition of the Arctic zone as a management category does not reflect the real differences between cities because there are radically different development trajectories within the boundaries of both the modern Arctic zone of the Russian Federation and the North of Canada. One of the trajectories is analyzed in detail using the example of the town of Norilsk (the modern Central District of the town of Norilsk). This is a frontier type of population dynamics: the decrease in population numbers is caused not so much by the outflow of population as by a decline in incoming migration while an overall high migration turnover is constant. The findings emphasize the need to move away from standardized planning scenarios and to consider the diversity of local conditions in managing the development of Arctic territories. 

The paper describes the results of a microclimatic experiment to study the thermal structure of the city of Yakutsk applying an independent deployed network of TZONE thermal sensors. The entire city was covered with a measuring infrastructure consisting of 18 sensors for a two-month period in the second half of the summer 2024. The data obtained clearly indicate the formation of a summer temperature anomaly in Yakutsk, which can be classified as a “summer heat island”. Its intensity at night, which is a diagnostic sign of a heat island, reaches 2,5–3,6°С. The average heat island value for the entire summer period can be estimated at 1,3–1,6°С. There is also significant diversity in the daily variation of temperature inside the city and within the background zone, which is most likely due to different heating regime of the surface air. The principal cause is the differential arrival of direct solar radiation because the “background” areas are more open to the sun’s rays. 

The paper deals with the spatiotemporal analysis of the tick-borne infections spread in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast. The study used materials on tick bites of people and tick infection with pathogens of especially dangerous infections for the period from 2018 to 2022. Information was collected on five infections relevant to the region, namely tick-borne viral encephalitis, ixodic tick-borne borreliosis, Siberian tick-borne typhus, human granulocytic anaplasmosis, and human monocytic ehrlichiosis.

The distribution of tick-borne infections by administrative districts of the region was analyzed. It was found that ixodic tick-borne borreliosis is the most widespread one. Based on point data about the places where infected ticks were found and considering a number of natural factors, a map of the potential range of tickborne infections in the region was compiled. Taking into account the predicted climatic data for the period of 2081–2100 under the most severe SSP5-8.5 climatic scenario, a map of the predicted area of tick-borne infections for the territory of the Jewish Autonomous Oblast at the end of the 21st century was prepared. 

The study is focused on the trophic status assessment of a reclamation pond using the floristic composition of coastal-aquatic vegetation. The most popular phytoindication methods, both descriptive and efficient, are those calculating the biotic index of freshwater ecosystems basing on the species composition of macrophytes. The method is based on assigning a bioindicative value, i.e. “trophic rank of species”, to the macrophytes. The water body is located within the territory of Kolomna urban district of the Moscow region. The catchment area is 1038,82 hectares; natural vegetation covers an area of 336,08 hectares (32,4%), water bodies – 25,53 hectares (2,5%), agricultural lands – 132,51 hectares (12,8%). The results of geobotanical survey and the remote sensing data suggested a fragmentary-microbelt type of location of the higher plants: mesophytes occupy 4,57 ha, hygrophytes – 4,13 ha, hygrogelophytes – 3,40 ha, and hydrophytes – 1,04 ha. The floristic composition of saprobity indicating species was analyzed to show that the trophic status of the pond is α-mesosaprobic. The large area (65,2%) of the pond’s littoral makes the macrophytes overgrowing highly possible. Water blooming caused by cyanobacteria is characteristic of the pond as a result of water stagnation in the absence of water transition to the downstream pool, input of biogenic elements from the catchment area and increasing water temperature on the littoral. The study shows that a complex of factors can be triggers for changing the environmental situation in the pond. In common they pose high risks for the further safe operation of the reclamation pond, both for regulating local runoff and for irrigation use. The information obtained is important for assessing the environmental consequences of changing state of reclamation facilities and developing a strategy for the management of life cycle of similar hydraulic structures. The procedure presented in the study could be adapted to study the trophic status of other aquatic ecosystems, contributing to better prediction and management of ecological risks in the amelioration branch of agriculture. 

The paper presents the results of studying the granulometric and elemental composition of modern alluvial deposits in the middle reaches of the Bolshaya Kokshaga River. It was demonstrated that their role in the formation of soils is significant only in the meandering sections of the riverbed in the immediate vicinity of the water edge (7–10 m), where the mass of material deposited on the riverbed ranges from 32 to 200 t/ha over the years. It decreases to 7,2 t/ha at a distance of 25 m, and rarely exceeds 100 kg/ha at a distance of 500 m. Under the side bar type of riverbed processes, the mass of alluvium in the riverine part of the floodplain is no more than 400 kg/ha. The chemical composition of alluvium reflects the influence of two mineralogical and geochemical provinces (Central Russian and Pre-Urals). It was found that alluvium of the facies of riverine ridges contains a greater amount of Si, Na, Zr, Sr, and Cr; the riverine floodplain alluvium contains more Al, Fe, K, Mg, Ti, and As, while the inner floodplain alluvium contains more Ca, P, Mn, S, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ba, and Rb. Six geochemical associations have been identified in alluvial deposits, i. e. Fe–Ca–Mn–S–P–Ba–Zn, Al–K– Mg–Ti–Cr, Si–Na–Zr, Fe–Mn–Ni–As, P–Cu, and Sr–Rb. The intake of Si, Na, Sr, and Zr is associated with the sand fraction; Al, K, Mg, Ti, and Ni come from the silty fraction, and Fe, Ca, P, Mn, S, Ba, and Zn are derived from the dusty fraction. Relative to the soils of the eluvial landscape of the Mari Polesie alluvial deposits are enriched (EF > 1) with Fe, Ca, P, Mn, S and Zn (biogenic input factor), Al, K, Mg, Ti and Cr (lithogenic factor), as well as Ni and Cu (chemogenic factor). They accumulate (KK > 1,5) Mn, P, As, Cu, Ni, Zn, S, and Zr, and dissipate (KP > 1,5) Al, K, Mg, Ca, Na, Rb, Ti, and Sr; and the values of Fe, Ba, and Cr are close to the Clark ones. The concentration of elements in alluvium are higher than the hygienic standards (MPC and ODC) for S, Mn, As, Cu, Ni and Zn. The content of chemical elements in alluvium could be considered as close to the natural (background) level.