Sarov (Russian: Саро́в) is a town in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It was known as Kremlyov (Russian: Кремлёв) from 1991-1995. In 1946-1991 it was called Arzamas-16 (Russian: Арзамас-16) and considered a closed city generally off limits to foreigners. Nizhny Novgorod Oblast (Нижегоро́дская о́бласть) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). ... A closed city is a city with travel and residency restrictions in the former Soviet Union, or in a CIS country. ...

The history of the city can be divided into two completely different periods. In the earlier history of Russia the city was known as a holy place for Orthodoxy, for its monastery, that gave Russia one of its greatest saints, St. Seraphim. In the newest history, it is USSR's and Russia's secret nuclear center, where Soviet nuclear weapons were created by the greatest Russian scientists. Saint Seraphim of Sarov (July 19th, 1759 - January 2nd, 1833) born Prokhor Moshnin, is one of the most renowned Russian monks and mystics in the the Eastern Orthodox Church. ...

The history of Sarov started around 12-13 century, when a large Mordovian settlement was found on its spot. In 1298, the city was taken over by Tatars. The Mordvins (Mordva) are a people who speak languages of the Finno-Permic branch of the Finno-Ugric language family. ... Tatar dance - Tatar (left) fighting with the soldier of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (right). ...

The town took its original name from being the site of the Sarova monastery next to the Sarovka River, the waters of which thought to have healing powers. In 1664, monk Theodosius first settled on Sarov mountain. The first Church of Sarov tenement was found in 1706. Saint Seraphim was living in Sarov from 1778 to 1833. In 1903, the town was visited by Tsar family. At that time it had 9 churches, including one underground. Around 320 monks lived in the monastery.

In 1923, the monastery was completely closed, monks faced bolshevik repressions, many were executed. During WWII, the monastery buildings were used as factories for producing rockets for BM-13 "Katyusha" rocket launchers. Katyusha rockets on ZiS-6 For the song, see Katyusha (song). ...

In 1946 and All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Experimental Physics, a nuclear weapons design facility, was built. The town recieved a code name of Arzamas-16 and was removed from all unclassified maps. In 1954, Arzamas-16 was given a city status. The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the hypocenter. ...

Much of the city was built by German POWs and the architecture has a definite German / European flavor. The city houses the Russian Federation Nuclear Center and "Atomic Bomb" museum which has a number of casings of Soviet-era nuclear weapons and photographs of those involved in their production. Most access is by train, which, after a security stop and inspection, is allowed into the city to disembark passengers. A small airport on the facility is generally for government aircraft only, and visitors usually fly to Nizhny Novgorod airport and then drive three hours. Nizhny Novgorod (Russian: Ни́жний Но́вгород), colloquially shortened as Nizhny and also transliterated into English as Nizhniy Novgorod or Nizhni Novgorod, is the fourth largest city of the Russian Federation, ranking after Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Novosibirsk. ...

The city is surrounded by fences that are patrolled by the military. Foreigner and Russians who do not live in Sarov are not allowed to enter the city. Foreigners who visit for business have to get special permission and are forced to surrender their passport, phone and camera to Russian security while they are in the facility, though some documentary filmmakers have shot footage inside the city walls.

The actual location of the closed city, "Arzamas-16" is difficult to find on the maps. This is because a large portion of it is located on the grounds of the P.G.S. State Park in the adjacent Temnikovski Raion of the Republic of Mordovia. The Republic of Mordovia (Moksha: Мордовскяй Республикась; Erzya: Мордовской Республикась; Russian: ) is a federal subject of Russia (a republic). ...

In 1993, it became a sister city to Los Alamos, New Mexico, the site of the U.S. nuclear weapons design laboratory (Los Alamos National Laboratory). This article is about partnerships between towns distant from each other; see Twin cities for the different concept of physically neighbouring cities. ... Los Alamos is an unincorporated townsite in Los Alamos County, New Mexico. ... Los Alamos National Laboratory, aerial view from 1995. ...

Boris Yeltsin changed the city's name to back Sarov after a formal request from residents in August 1995. Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin listen ▶(?) (Russian: Борис Николаевич Ельцин) (born February 1, 1931) was President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. ...

In present days, Russian Federal nuclear center is responsible for important decisions of development, production, storage and utilisation of nuclear weapons, recycling of radioactive and other materials. Reasearch in fundamental and application physics research is conducted as well.

See also

• Saint Seraphim of Sarov

• Igor Kurchatov
• Andrei Sakharov
• Lavrenti Beria
• Soviet atomic bomb project

Saint Seraphim of Sarov (July 19th, 1759 - January 2nd, 1833) born Prokhor Moshnin, is one of the most renowned Russian monks and mystics in the the Eastern Orthodox Church. ... Igor The Beard Kurchatov Igor Vasilyevich Kurchatov (И́горь Васи́льевич Курча́тов) (January 8, 1903 – February 7, 1960), Soviet/Russian physicist. ... Andrei Sakharov, 1943 Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov (Андре́й Дми́триевич Са́харов, May 21, 1921 – December 14, 1989), was an eminent Soviet-Russian nuclear physicist, dissident and human rights activist. ... Lavrenty Beria Lavrenty Pavlovich Beria (Russian: Лавре́нтий Па́влович Бе́рия) (29 March 1899 - 23 December 1953), Soviet politician and police chief, is remembered chiefly as the executor of Joseph Stalins Great Purge of the 1930s, although in fact he presided only over the closing stages of the Purge. ... The Soviet project to develop an atomic bomb began during World War II in the Soviet Union. ...

References

• "Los Alamos and Arzamas-16: The 'Sister Cities' Relationship," Los Alamos Science 24 (1996): 44-47.[1]
• Борис Забываев. "Любимый город". Саров в Internet. [2]

External links

• Sarov city website (in Russian)
• Sarov Information from the Nuclear Cities Initiative Website