According to the jury’s minutes, Professor Oganesian was awarded for his “breakthrough discoveries that extended the boundaries of the periodic table, as well as his significant contribution for the promotion of the basic sciences at global scale.”

Oganesian is a specialist in experimental physics of the atomic nucleus, research of nuclear reactions, the synthesis and study of the properties of new elements of the periodic table, TASS news agency reported.

The second winner was Italian chemist Vincenzo Balzani, of the University of Bologna, Italy, who earlier won the Leonardo da Vinci Award of the European Academy of Sciences.

The UNESCO-Russia International Mendeleev Prize aims to draw attention on the importance of these disciplines for peaceful and prosperous societies, promote scientific progress, spread science and international cooperation.

The awarding ceremony will take place on November 15 at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France.

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