Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Novosibirsk State University –
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In August 2025, a group of students Faculty of Geology and Geophysics Novosibirsk State University (NSU GGF) took part in an internship in sedimentology, stratigraphy and paleontology organized by Peking University for the first time. The group included one foreign student – Avishka Alagiyavanna from Sri Lanka, a second-year master's student at NSU GGF. The group was led by NSU postgraduate student Margarita Luzan.
The internship lasted two weeks and took place in southwest China in Guizhou Province, known for its unique habitats of marine vertebrates that existed in the Triassic period of the Mesozoic era. These places are important for understanding the restoration of marine ecosystems and the evolution of marine reptiles after the mass extinction at the end of the Permian period. This academic year, students from Peking University will visit the NSU geological training ground "Shira" (Khakassia), where students of the NSU Faculty of Geology and Geophysics undergo geological survey practice.
NSU GGF students underwent geological practice in mixed groups with Chinese students. Each route group included 1-2 NSU students. They worked together at observation points, attended theoretical classes and prepared daily reports on their activities.
— Our internship began with studying the most ancient deposits, dating back 900 million years. We gradually moved on to younger layers. Our acquaintance with the unique geological and paleontological artifacts of China began with the museum at Peking University, which houses rich mineralogical and paleontological collections. Then we flew to Guizhou Province, where the main internship continued, including sedimentological and paleontological aspects. This province is home to two lagerstätten — unique fossil sites where, due to special conditions, not only hard parts of skeletons are well preserved, but also imprints of soft tissues of animals and plants. We studied rock sequences and observed changes in sedimentation settings, including sections with coal interlayers. It is known that coals are formed in continental conditions, and limestones formed in marine shelf conditions are found next to them. We found various traces of ancient life – brachiopods, foraminifera and mineral samples, – Margarita Luzan shared her impressions of the internship.
A highlight for NSU students was a visit to the so-called "golden nail", which serves as a reference point on the stratigraphic section and defines the lower boundary of the stage on the geochronological scale. In these sections, the boundary between geological systems is clearly visible. The students also visited the Xinyi Geopark, which contains lagerstätten, and unique finds from them are housed in museums around the world.
— In such a short time, our students have seen a great many geological artifacts, which they were shown both in museums and on specific outcrops. Now they have a clear idea of the structure of sedimentary basins that formed many hundreds of millions of years ago. This knowledge is extremely important for geologists. For our part, we can offer Chinese students an internship at our educational geological site "Shira" (Khakassia), where all the conditions for practical training and accommodation have been created. As part of mixed groups, they will be able to get a detailed idea of the structure of sedimentary basins and the formation of igneous rocks already on our territory, — noted Dean of the NSU Geological Faculty, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Valery Vernikovsky.
This internship was the result of agreements on cooperation in the field of earth sciences reached during the visit of the Peking University delegation to NSU this spring. As cooperation develops, the parties will form joint research projects. The leadership of Peking University expressed interest in conducting geological internships for their students.
— In the near future, a cooperation agreement between our universities will be prepared, which will spell out all the important points. The signing of the agreement is planned for the end of this year. Such internships allow our students to get acquainted with various geological practices, which is very important for young scientists. Peking University is one of the oldest universities in China, founded in 1898. It ranks second in Chinese university rankings and is among the top 50 universities in the world. Therefore, we are interested in cooperation with this university, — noted the head of the NSU education export department, Evgeny Sagaydak.
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