Anthropogenic transformation of relief within the Vorkuta industrial region during 90 years of economic development was for the first time quantitatively evaluated. Areas of predominantly direct (creation of anthropogenic relief) and indirect (change in the conditions of relief formation, spectrum and intensity of geomorphologic processes) transformation of relief are identified. About 25% (144 km²) of the entire area of the region are under anthropogenic landforms (79 km²), or with a significant change in the natural course of geomorphologic processes (65 km²). Among the direct anthropogenic transformations of relief accumulative ones, i.e. the creation of positive forms of anthropogenic relief (dumps, embankments, etc.), prevail in terms of area and volumes of displaced matter; their total area is 75,2 km² and the volume is 417,8 million m³. About 30% of the area of all positive anthropogenic forms and 66% of their volume are mine dumps. Direct denudation transformations (creation of quarries, canals, etc.) are significantly smaller in area (3,8 km²) and the volume of displaced material (72 million m³). Indirect transformations of relief take place in the immediate vicinity of the zones of direct transformations (up to 1 km, mainly within 200 m). They include the changes in the spectrum and intensity of geomorphologic processes (primarily permafrost, slope and fluvial) due to disruption of the continuity of vegetation cover, changes in the hydrogeological regime, heat balance of permafrost, etc. The anthropogenic deposits are mainly the products of rock crushing including the coal-bearing rocks withdrawn during the excavation of underground workings. The largest volumes of anthropogenic sediments are concentrated in the dump fields of mines, the Pechorskaya Central Processing Plant and the Yun-Yaginsky open coal mine (up to 66% of the total volume), as well as in the embankments under settlements (up to 26%). Slope, erosion and aeolian processes which are rather marginal under natural conditions, have developed within the areas of anthropogenic relief; the spectrum of cryogenic processes has been changed there: the cryogenic weathering has become a leading process, while on the contrary, heaving and thermokarst are practically absent. The spontaneous combustion is the most dangerous geomorphologic process within the dump fields of operating and abandoned mines. The recorded signs of pyrolysis, e. g. surface hovering, release of hot gases and solutions, fumaroles, subsidence of the dump surface etc., indicate possible existence of large cavities and cracks in the dump body.

New results of studying the lakes and glacial deposits on slopes of the highest Aragats volcanic massif in Armenia are analyzed. On the basis of geomorphologic and paleolimnological methods the signs of rhythmic formation of post-glacial relief, and stadial development of moraines and high mountain lakes have been revealed. For the first time echolocation of the lake depression and drilling of the Lake Umroi sediments were carried out, and the radiocarbon dating and data on stratigraphy of the lake sediments were obtained. The morphometric characteristics of the lake were specified based on echolocation. The chronology of stage regression of the recent mountain glaciation is discussed. The age of the Umroi Lake formation in the Aragats massif – about 7000 cal. BP – was determined using the radiocarbon (AMS) dating; it corresponds to the period of the glacier retreat from the terminal moraine of the Bühl stage (in Alpine terminology). The article analyzes published materials of preceding glaciomorphological studies in the Lesser Caucasus and the Aragats Massif. The hypothesis of stadial moraine relief formation on the slopes of the Aragats Massif during the Holocene is based on the Pettersson-Shnitnikov theoretical scheme, which was elaborated for Eurasian mountains. The possibilities of determining the relative age of the formation of moraine relief and lakes on the basis of paleolimnological research are shown. Forms of glacial relief include several generations of stadial terminal moraines and associated lacustrine basins, and reflect the cyclic dynamics of the recent glaciation retreat in the Aragats Massif in line with the centuries-long climatic rhythms of the Holocene. The radiocarbon (AMS) dating of lake sediments in mountain lakes combined with pollen and stratigraphic analysis of bottom sediments could be taken as the most representative approach for indirect identification of the age of adjacent moraine deposits and for studying the rhythmic variability of natural processes during the Holocene.

The horizontal Tavrida Cave (Zuya settlement, Crimea), discovered in June 2018 during the construction of the highway, is a unique paleontological monument. The stages of the cave formation and its taphocenoses have been studied. The study was carried out using geomorphologic, stratigraphic, geological, structural and paleontological methods.

The zoogenic complex of vertebrate fossils from the cave sediments corresponds to the Late Villafrancian fauna of the Eastern Mediterranean (MNQ18–MNQ19), namely the Psekup faunal complex (1,8–1,5 Ma). The faunal complex includes Hystrix vinogradovi, Hystrix refossa, Pachycrocuta brevirostris, Canis sp., Homotherium crenatidens, Megantereon sp., Ursus etruscus, Archidiskodon sp., Equus sp., Elasmotherium caucasicum, Stephanorcus sp., Bison sp., Gazellospira torticornis, Arvernoceros verestchagini, Pontoceros sp., Hypolagus brachignatus, and Pachiostrutio dmanisensis.

The initial, corrosion-erosion stage of the cave formation dates back to the Early Pliocene, the Cimmerian time of hot and humid tropical climate. An under-watercourse canal was isolated within the Pliocene epiplatform system of surface runoff in low-lying conditions up to 50 m a. s. l. Eocene limestones were drained along cracks and cavernous strata along the contact with the Barremian sandstones by phreatic canal, subsequently forming large galleries with free-flowing waters. A distinctive feature of the cave is the erosional multilevel meander structure of the canal, with levels of initial and final meandering.

The accumulative stage of development covers the time interval from the Eopleistocene to the Neopleistocene. The drained relict cave was opened by a lateral valley and was filled with subaerial allochthonous products of terra rossa hypergenesis and limestone weathering, corresponding to savannahtype environments. At this stage, a large colony of Chiroptera lived in the cave, and a zoogenic taphocenosis of the Late Villafrancian fauna was formed. Seven main stages of sedimentation have been identified, as well as the out-of-stage seismic generations.

The conservation stage of development, with the entrance backfilling, is thought to start in the Cromer (0,5–0,7 Ma). Under temperate climate the desquamation products and gray humous loams completely blocked the entrance to the cave. Dense backfilling of all karst canals put the end to air exchange between the cavity and the outside surface atmosphere.

Reconstruction of the Holocene history of the eastern Laptev Sea continental margin is based on the downcore records of ice- and iceberg-rafted debris (IRD) and fossil assemblages of benthic and planktic foraminifers in two marine sediment cores obtained from different depths on the continental slope, e. g. 122 and 983 m. The early Holocene (8,2–11,7 cal. ka) is distinguished by its warmest climatic conditions as evidenced by the highest abundance of foraminifers, low IRD content, bioproductivity peaks and high representation of phytodetritus species. At the beginning of the middle Holocene (7,4–8,2 cal. ka), a sharp decrease in foraminifera numbers was recorded, up to their complete disappearance in the core from 122 m water depth. In combination with extremely fine-grained composition of sediments this suggests the development of a thick ice cover, which might have caused a drop in bioproductivity. After 7,4 cal. ka the increasing amount of IRD together with the growing representation of both river-proximal benthic foraminifers and attached epifaunal species indicate climate cooling that has been also recorded previously for the western Laptev Sea. Its manifestations include the growing area of the sea-ice cover, southward shift of the seasonal drift ice margin, and the advance of ice caps on the Severnaya Zemlya Archipelago. The IRD peaks with the periodicity of 1–1,5 thousand years are almost synchronous in the west and east of the sea; they coincide with time intervals of 7–7,4, 6,4–6,6, 5–5,8, 2,8–3,8, 1,6–2 and 0,8–1,2 cal. ka.

An express method for calculation of gully erosion potential is proposed. It is based on the estimation of critical flow characteristics at which linear erosion of soil begins. The novelty of the proposed approach is the transition from calculating the critical velocity of erosion initiation to calculating the critical runoff depth at which such velocity is realized. All values necessary for calculating the critical runoff depth and the gully erosion potential as the normalized difference between the maximum runoff depth and its critical value are well-defined and could be obtained both from measurements and by calculation. The method is easily and quickly implemented in any geographical information system; the output is the distribution of the level of the gully potential over the territory (catchment) and the degree of risk of the development of gully erosion for the entire territory (catchment). The results of evaluating the gully erosion potential by the express method were compared with the data of gully erosion calculation using the detailed dynamic model and showed the satisfactory agreement. This confirms the possibility of applying the expressmethod for quick assessment of development potential of particular territories, as well as the risks of landscape disturbance during natural processes of gully erosion.

The article is devoted to the analysis of spatial patterns of COVID-19 distribution, the geography of which was fully manifested in the period from February to May 2020. It is during this period that clear areas and boundaries of regional differences of «spreading» are recorded, associated with existing logistical, socio-economic and center-peripheral factors. Later monitoring of COVID-19 shows an averaging of indicators (at dawn per 100 thousand inhabitants) and a kind of leveling of the epidemiological situation in accordance with the population density.

The paper uses data on morbidity in conjunction with management measures, which in turn were dictated not only by the objective epidemiological situation, but also by regional features of socio-political processes. We use Yandex data on self-isolation and our own media monitoring of conflicts and hotbeds of social tension (increased fears) in Russia. The COVID-19 geo-information system is used by ArcGIS for analysis and mapping.

Spatial analysis is built in the logic of multi-scale, i.e. World, Russia, Moscow. All three levels are characterized by a «diffusion of coronavirus innovations» associated with the beginning of spread in well-off and socially-economically developed urban centers. Then the center of distribution shifts to peripheral less developed territories. For Russia, at the initial stages of COVID-19 distribution, there are three main centers, namely Moscow and the Moscow region, oil and gas-bearing regions and the North, and the North Caucasus. The main factors of the high rate of virus spread in these territories are both the developed transport and logistics characteristics, and a set of unique regional features, such as increased contact and a weak health system in Dagestan, shift flows and crowding of shift settlements in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous district, and a high share of the creative class in the Moscow region.

The work is a monitoring study and will be supplemented with new data, maps and analytics. By the end of 2020 – beginning of 2021, it will be possible to assess the contribution of COVID-19 to overall mortality and analyze in detail the demographic consequences of the spread of the virus.

Arid soils perform important ecological functions, primarily maintaining biodiversity and sustainability of the biosphere. Cadmium is among the priority pollutants for arid soils. The arid soils of the South of the European part of Russia differ in their resistance to cadmium pollution and form the following sequence (the soils are arranged in the descending order of their resistance): ordinary chernozems (haplic chernozem) ≥ dark brown (haplic kastanozems) ≥ chestnut (haplic kastanozems) ≥ light chestnut (haplic kastanozems)> brown semi-desert (haplic calcisols)> sandy (calcaric arenosols). The heavier the particle size and the higher the organic matter content in studied soils, the more bound and less toxic the metals are. Also, regional maximum permissible concentrations (rMPC) of cadmium in arid soils of the south of the European part of Russia were suggested basing on the violation of their ecosystem functions. Regional MPC of cadmium for ordinary chernozem (haplic chernozem) and dark chestnut soils (haplic kastanozems) is 3,0 mg/kg of soil, 2,4 mg/kg for chestnut (kastanozems haplic), 1,9 mg/kg for light chestnut (haplic kastanozems), 1,6 mg/kg for brown semi-desert (haplic calcisols), and 1,1 mg/kg for sandy brown semi-desert (calcaric arenosols). The developed rMPC can be used to standardize cadmium content in arid soils of other regions of the world. Also, prognostic maps of the degree of deterioration of the biological state of arid soils under different levels of cadmium pollution have been compiled for southern Russia.

Historical and geographical studies of rural settlement, as well as urban one, usually focused on the processes of territory development and settlement, i.e. on the formation of new settlements, while their disappearance was of little interest. The materials we revealed for the Lebedyan district of the Lipetsk region of Russia made it possible to trace the long-term trends in the dynamics of rural settlement as a uniform process of new settlements formation and the disappearance of old ones. In particular, we analyzed the links between the foundation time of rural settlements and their future. The most «ancient» rural settlements which in our case were founded in the 17^th century, turned out to be the most sustainable; the vast majority of them have survived to this day. The later the rural settlement was founded, the less chance it had to survive. Therefore, the present-day rural settlements of the district are mainly those established during the 17^th –18^th centuries, while more than 2/3 of the settlements that came into existence later have not survived to our time. Settlements formed in the 17^th –18^th centuries account for 54% of the total number of rural settlements in the district and concentrate 92% of the total population. Their average population is 347 people, while that of «young» settlements established in the 19 th century and later is 45 people. Thus, the oldest settlements are more populous, much more often attract central functions and are generally very sustainable. This is probably due to the inertness of the settlement system of the Lebedyan district, where the network of settlement centers remained unchanged for almost four centuries.

The paper discusses the variability of winter minimum decadal water discharge for 12 gauge stations with the longest series of observations on the rivers flowing into the Sevan Lake.

Basing on the statistical analysis the norm of winter average decadal minimum discharge of the rivers was calculated, as well as the coefficients of variability (C_v) and irregularity (C_s). The probability curves of minimum water discharges of rivers were plotted, and the spatial and temporal variability of hydrological parameters under study was analyzed.

Correlations between water discharge values and the catchment areas were used to calculate the runoff parameters of the unexplored rivers. The map of the distribution of average winter decadal minimum runoff rate was compiled.

Studies show that the winter average decade minimum discharge of the rivers of the Lake Sevan basin has very uneven spatial distribution. The parameters under study vary on the average from 0,049 to 2,63 m³/sec, i. e. from 1,15 to 5,63 l/(sec km²) in the area. The highest minimum average decadal winter discharge of the rivers of the lake basin is 3,81 m³/sec, and the smallest is 0,006 m³/sec. Some rivers of the lake basin with relatively small catchment area and significant average balanced height have no runoff in winter because of through freezing resulting from the minor groundwater supply and low winter temperatures.

Temporal variability of water runoff is rather low for the rivers under study. The coefficient of variation (variability) of winter average decadal minimum discharges is 0,14–0,63. Most of the rivers in the lake basin have a tendency to increase winter average decadal minimum discharge due to the growing mean air temperature and increasing amount of precipitation during the winter period.

The article reviews the stages of rural settlement patterns transformation for a long period by the cases of several municipalities of Mari El (Paranginsky and Mari-Tureksky) and Bashkortostan (Fyodorosky). The objects of the study are polyethnic regions. The rural districts under study are traditionally inhabited by Bashkir, Mari, Russian, Tatar, Chuvash, Udmurt and Mordva peoples. The emphasis of the study was on the ethnic and cultural impacts on rural settlement patterns transformation. It was analyzed with due consideration of specific features of the history of settlement, economic practices of different ethnic groups, demographic and migration behavior, stages of demographic transition and participation in urbanization. Mechanisms of the effect of different factors causing the transformation of the rural settlement network patterns were revealed at the local level, namely physical-geographical factor (at the early stages of settlement), positional (especially transport-geographical which was important during the next periods), demographic (defining the population numbers in rural settlements), institutional (more pronounced during the Soviet period). All factors were analyzed in terms of the ethnic composition of the population. Three stages of rural settlement evolution under ethnic and cultural factors interactions with other ones were identified, i. e. formation of rural settlement network; development of the rural settlement system under positive dynamics of population; transformation of rural settlement network under depopulation, growing territorial mobility of people and the ethnic identity raising. Cultural elements define the vision of the territory by ethnic groups and influence both personal and collective decisions principal for the rural settlement pattern development.

The paper describes the experience of using portable gamma-ray spectrometric and dosimetric equipment for a large-scale geomorphological study of the Lokna river floodplain section subjected to intense radioactive contamination after the 1986 Chernobyl accident. The obtained results made it possible to produce in a short time and with low labor efforts a detailed picture of floodplain accumulation process in the studied area during the post-Chernobyl period. The measurement results were verified by layer-bylayer sampling of floodplain sediments and determining their radionuclide content under laboratory conditions. The highest rates of sedimentation were recorded in the low floodplain. Reduction of radionuclide concentrations in sediment runoff results in the burial of the most polluted layers under cleaner ones. Thus, the natural self-purification occurs, which leads to a systematic decrease in the dose rate of gamma radiation. This important from the radioecological point of view positive effect should be taken into account while forecasting the future situation.

The contribution of horizontal and vertical advection and nonlinear dynamic heating to the formation of positive sea surface temperature anomaly during two types of El Niño is evaluated from the analysis of the ocean upper mixed layer heat budget using the GLORYS2v4 reanalysis data. The oceanic processes responsible for the increasing temperature anomaly during canonical and Modoki El Niños were identified for the modern climatic conditions (1992–2015). It is demonstrated that during the development phase of both types of El Niño the vertical and horizontal advection results in the growth of the upper mixed layer heat budjet in the tropical parts of the Pacific. The vertical advection plays the key role in the formation of heat anomaly in the eastern tropical Pacific for both El Niños while the horizontal advection prevails in the central tropical Pacific. The difference between the mechanism of heat content anomaly formation for canonical and Modoki El Niño is due to the different intensity of temperature growth. Moderate El Niños are characterized by intensive heating in the central tropical Pacific caused by zonal and meridional advection. During strong El Niños the contribution of vertical advection increases, especially in the eastern Pacific. Nonlinear dynamic heating is not supportive of the positive temperature anomaly growth, even causing the anomaly decrease in some cases.