Nicolai Ivanovich Andrusov (russian: Николай Иванович Андрусов, Nikolay Ivanovich Andrusov; 19 December 1861 – 27 April 1924) was a Russian Empire born geologist,

stratigrapher Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers ( strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithostrat ...

, and palaeontologist. He was born in

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

, then a part of the

Russia Empire Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

. He studied geology and zoology at the

Novorossia University Novorossiya, literally "New Russia", is a historical name, used during the era of the Russian Empire for an administrative area that would later become the southern mainland of Ukraine: the region immediately north of the Black Sea and Crimea. ...

in Odessa. He then traveled across the Russian Empire and central Europe to collect fossil specimens. The Challenger expedition of 1872–1876 studied processes of the sea floor. In 1889 Andrusov published a review of this expedition in Gornyi zhurnal (Mining Journal). He would later perform studies of the geology and sediments of the Ponto-Caspian steppe. In 1890-91 he participated in a deep water expedition to the Black Sea by the Russian Geographical Society. This expedition discovered

hydrogen sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The unde ...

in the lower portions of this sea. Andrusov was the first to propose that this substance was created by biological decomposition of life forms ( bacteria) containing sulfurous compounds. He was married to Nadezhda Genrikhovna Schliemann in 1899, the daughter of

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

Heinrich Schliemann. In 1905 he became a professor at the University of Kyiv. In 1914 he became a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He emigrated to France in 1920 due to illness. In 1919 he learned about the death of his elder son, and suffered a

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

which resulted in

paralysis Paralysis (also known as plegia) is a loss of motor function in one or more muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory damage. In the United States, roughly 1 in 50 ...

of a leg and an arm. His relatives decided to move him to Paris, where he had an inheritance from his father-in-law. In 1922 he moved to Prague due to material difficulties, where he died in 1924. His son

Dimitrij Andrusov Dimitrij Andrusov (7 November 1897 – 1 April 1976) was a Slovak geologist of Russian origin, member of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. He was first professor of geology on Slovak colleges. He is considered the founder of modern Slovak geolo ...

became a notable geologist and a member of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. The

wrinkle ridge A wrinkle ridge is a type of feature commonly found on lunar maria, or basalt plains. These features are low, sinuous ridges formed on the mare surface that can extend for up to several hundred kilometers. Wrinkle ridges are tectonic features cr ...

Dorsa Andrusov on the Moon is named after him, as well as the Mid-Black Sea High -

Andrusov Ridge Andrusov is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Dimitrij Andrusov (1897–1976), Slovak geologist *Nicolai Ivanovich Andrusov (1861–1924), Russian geologist, stratigrapher, and paleontologist **Dorsa Andrusov Dorsa Andrusov is ...

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*
Bio, in Ukrainian
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andrusov, Nicolai Ivanovich 1861 births 1924 deaths Geologists from the Russian Empire Explorers from the Russian Empire Scientists from Odesa Andrusov, Nicolai Full members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Full Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences (1917–1925) Soviet emigrants to France French emigrants to Czechoslovakia

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