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How three Ukrainian scientists are surviving Russia’s brutal war

Helping, healing and fighting: researchers have become refugees, soldiers and activists in the face of a horrifying conflict.
  1. Nisha Gaind
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Olena Prysiazhna, medical physicist portrayed at DIFFER (Dutch institute for fundamental energy research) in Eindhoven.

Ukrainian plasma physicist Olena Prysiazhna is now in the Netherlands and is talking to Dutch scientists about continuing her research. Credit: Ilvy Njiokiktjien/VII Photo for Nature

Olena Prysiazhna fled Russia’s invasion twice. On 25 February, the 35-year-old plasma physicist raced out of Kyiv to her home village 80 kilometres away, hoping to escape the coming attacks on Ukraine’s capital city. Two weeks later, Russian shells began raining down on the previously peaceful village. A rocket exploded in her neighbour’s back garden.

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Nature 605, 414-416 (2022)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-01272-3

Updates & Corrections

  • Correction 09 May 2022: An earlier version of this story misidentified who opened up Oleksyk’s home to displaced people.

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